The Long Awaited Adventure
by Ivaliny
Summary: AU. Rin is an average girl with a dull life until she finds a mysterious painting. Soon her life will be changed as the adventure she's always wanted, but never expected to have, begins. SessRin
1. Lives Can Be So Boring

**A/N: All Inuyasha characters belong to Rumiko Takahashi.**

**The Long Awaited Adventure**

By Ivaliny

Chapter 1

_"Lives Can Be So Boring"

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_

"The chosen one will come!"

A maniacal laugh verberated through the small, damp chamber. "I think not my princess. Your kingdom will be no more." A man in a dark, ragged cloak appeared from out of the shadows. "There is no chosen one," the man hissed.

"He will come, and you will be sorry you ever messed with Efeu!"

"Such brave words for a captured princess."

She glared at his cold smile, which suddenly grew serious.

"I may let you go if you tell me what I want to know. Although, if I do let you go, your fate will be the same. You will die sooner or later, most likely sooner." He chuckled at the thought.

"I will tell you nothing!" she snapped, struggling against the hard leathery strops.

"Who is the white-haired boy you were with?"

"Why?"

"Just answer me," he growled.

She said nothing.

"Fine, you can stay here while Efeu falls to the hands of my minions. Say good-bye to your precious kingdom, princess," he hissed, flashing sharp pointy teeth.

"I am not worried, the chosen one WILL come and destroy you, Warrik."

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"Vampire kid! Vampire kid!" screamed an over excited teenager. The girl behind the counter looked up from her notebook as the teenager ran into the silent convenient store, hyperventilating, and out of breath.

"Vampire kid is back, Rin! I saw him sucking on a cow in the middle of the road, and then he disappeared! It was totally awesome!"

Rin jumped up off the stool she was sitting on, squealing. " I can't believe he's back!"

The two girls gave another squeal and started to jump around in a circle.

"Now that he's back we can get the evidence we need to prove vampires exist!"

"I know, Artemis!" Rin jumped around some more.

"Come, you have to go see the cow! It's about three miles from here."

Rin began to follow Artemis out of the store when she stopped at the glass doors and sighed. "I can't. I'm working."

Artemis looked at her friend with a frown,"It's 1 AM! Why does Mr. Tihomirov make you work all night when you don't even get any customers in the day time? Why keep it open so late, better yet, why keep the store open at all?"

"I don't know," Rin shrugged,"but you know how attatched Mr. Tihomirov is to this store. He's had it open forever! But whatever the reason, he pays a lot, which gets me one step closer to leaving this crap hole called a town and on to a new, way more exciting, adventure."

Artemis shrugged," So, ditch the store for half an hour and some see the cow."

Rin shook her head," I can't. Mr. Tihomirov trusts me. I can't just leave. It would be wrong. I'm staying, sorry Artemis." She walked back to her stool and picked up her notebook and pencil.

With much disappointment, Artemis left the old convenient store, leaving Rin alone like she was every night. _Tenoh's Stop 'n Go_, was in a tiny farm called, Barnesby. Barnesby was an old farming community that has been well populated in the early 20th century, but had later been abandoned when the Great Depression struck their crops, so most people left for the big cities. Now only a hundred or so live on surrounding farms with the post officebeing the main hang out point to learn juicy details about your surrounding neighbors. All but a few of Rin's graduating class left Barnesby as soon as they could get away from the boring and dull town. Rin wanted to leave as well, longing for a grand adventure that you could only get outside of Barnesby. As for Artemis, she didn't want to leave, always saying "Barnesby has a sense of homeliness you can get anywhere else," but Rin new the real reason, the Vampire Kid.

The Vampire Kid was one of the girls' many paranormal projects that helped to pass the time. One night a few years ago, the two girls came across a boy sucking on a bloody rabbit in the middle of the woods. They told some people at school and were braded as freaks fro the rest of their high school careers, but that didn't stop their love for the paranormal. They have studied everything from aliens, werewolves,to the allusive Big Foot, which was one of Rin's favorite.

Rin loved the fantasy/science fiction drama of the world and would spend hours reading books about alien invasions, vampires controlling their victims, and ghosts haunting houses. But her favorite thing to do was draw and express the scifi realm through art. As of late, her artwork has been centered around dragons, fairies, strange creatures, mermaids, princesses and princes, and castles from a far off mythical land.

She looked around the silent store and sighed as she glanced up at the clock. _Only 5 more hours to go_, she thought before returning her attention to her new masterpiece. Contained in the artwork was a man, tall with long silver hair, at the streams edge allowing his two-headed dragon a drink of water. The image came to her that afternoon as she napped by her favorite spot, a shady, soft grassy spot underneath a large pear tree. She dreamed of him and his dragon and couldn't let the image go. Smiling, she imagined the dragon happily, but wearily, drinking the cool refreshing stream water as the man talked sweet things to the giant lizard. Now as she stared at the scene, she longed to join the two in their travels.

She was snapped back from her day dreaming by a loud noise from the back of the store, Rin tumbled off of the stool in surprise. Cautiously, she moved towards the back rooms. _What if it is Vampire Kid?_Something wasbangingaround in the closetas the supplies crashed to the floor and toppled over, she grew nearer. Heart pounding, she opened the door to find a mess on the floor.

"What the...?"

She began to pick up the mop and cleaning supplies when something underneath a disarray pile of paper towels started to move. She jerked back her hand with a gasp. Gathering up her nerves, she reached down to see what lay beneath when the movement quickly stopped. She pulled away the towels to reveal a painting.

She looked down at the painting in awe. It was beautiful. The sky was painted orange and purple as silhouettes of birds danced across the sky. Below the sky were dark pine forests with a river flowing placidly between. Far off in the background were a row of mountains, and faintly, a castle rose about the peak, reaching towards the sky. The painting looked so peaceful and full of history. She almost didn't want to touch it. Where did the painting come from, and why was it in the cleaning closet? Form all the times of going into that closet she had never seen this paitning before. What could have made such a mess? _A painting couldn't cause such a mess, knocking off supplies from each shelf_, she thought. Reaching down hesitantly, she picked up the painting.

The painting was surprisingly very heavy. Walking out of the closet, she noticed every detail of each paint stroke. Whoever painted this piece of artwork put perfection and care into each stroke that made Rin feel deep appreciation for the artist. Thinking of the artist, she wondered if there was an artists mark somewhere. She looked around the corners and flipped it over to find the artist's signature. _Tenoh Tihomirov._

_Tenoh Tihomirov_, she thought. "Must be a family heirloom." She looked at the signature again and saw below it a word, Efeu.

Suddenly the painting began to shake in her hands. Her eyes flew wide open as the painting began to glow. The orange became vibrant and bright casting orange rays upon her face. The river began to sparkle as the purple began to fade and the trees lost their silhouette turning bright green. The castle in the background became distinct, almost shining off the rising sun. It was as if the painting was changing the time of day. Rin looked at the painting with disbelief.

"What is this?" she heard her self say as the painting shook more violently. Rin set the painting down in a panic, as she tried to grasp what was happening. As soon as she set the painting down, the shaking stopped, sitting still on the counter next to the cash register. She looked at the painting in confusion.

"Why did it stop?" she wondered. "How could the painting change the tome of day?"

With a shake of her head, Rin decided to get back to her own artwork and forget what had just happened. Sketching and drawing the details on her piece, her mind kept wandering towards the painting. It was so still and quiet. Something was drawing her towards it and it was hard to resist as she reached out to touch it. Once her hand was hoovering above, the painting began to wobble. She pulled back her arm immediately and it stopped. She couldn't breathe, unable to understand what was going on. Trying to see what was making the painting shake, she examined the painting again, but this time she saw something different. Next to the river, a very tiny pulsating rock was glowing. The pulsating glow was barely noticeable as she felt her hand behind drawn to the rock. Slowly, she reached out to it. To her amazement the rock didn't feel like it was apart of the painting, it felt like an actual rock protruding from the canvas. She tried to pull it off, but instead her whole body began to tingle as a bright light exploded in her face. She screamed as she felt her body being pulled into the painting.

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**A/N: Hey! I hoped you all liked the first chapter! Please Submit reviews! I wanna know what you all thought! Oh, and don't worry, the second chapter is being typed upas soon as possible **


	2. A Proposition and A Dragon

**A/N: All Inuyasha characters belong to Rumiko Takahashi! **

**The Long Awaited Adventure**

**by Ivaliny**

Chapter 2

"A Proposition and A Dragon"

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Rin woke up staring at the tops of trees. She moved her arm slowly to her pounding head. Her body still felt tingly, as if she were stuck in the middle of a dream. Slowly, she sat up, pushing away the headache that sent jabs of pain to her temples. Looking around, she realized she definitely wasn't in Barnesby. The trees were different, tall and powerful, sprouting limbs of history, yet somehow, knowing she had no idea where she was, she felt at peace. She felt as if the trees were protecting her. Her short period of unease, worry, and fear somehow left her being. 

Trying to remember how she got there, she recalled a painting. Did she go through the painting magically, or was she in the painting itself? She got up and stretched her arms towards the sky, and with a sigh began to wander about the forest's floor. Birds sang love songs to each other as woodland creatures scurried about through brush and leaves. The smell of wildflowers and fresh vegetation wafted through the air towards her nose.

Rin knew she should be worried or scared, but somehow she couldn't conjure up those emotions. It was as if she was meant to be in the place, to be surrounded by the beautiful forest, to gaze upon nature in awe of its miraculous wonder.

Wandering further she could hear the rush of bubbling water against riverbed rocks. The sound was soothing. She licked her lips with thirst. The water sounded so good and refreshing, and as she neared the river, she heard voices. Silently, she tip toed towards the edge of the forest. Crouching down behind a tree, she saw a man pacing back and forth, running his hands with impatience through his hair, mumbling with a deep-chested growl.

"Where is he?" the man growled, looking up at the sky. "That jerk is late!"

A rustling of leaves from about drew the man's attention to a large shadow above him in the sky. The shadow grew larger as Rin strained to see what was causing the wind to pick up and the sky to be covered by a shadow. To further her amazement, the shadow became a large beast with two heads making a landing by the river. The closer the beast came, the more details she could see. It has two reptilian like heads attatched to a muscular dinosaur shaped body with a scaley, rat-shaped, pointed tail. The whole body was covered in greenish, bronze scales. Her jaw flew open as it landed in front of the man with flawless ease. The beast snorted once it landed, informing his arrival. The man looked at the beast with disgust.

"You're stupid dragon smells, you jerk!" he snapped. "Oh and by the way, you're late!"

Rin watched as a man jumped off the dragon and stood with controlled power in front of the other. He was at least a foot taller than the other, standing tall and proud. He looked as if her were of royal blood.

"I didn't have to come at all, little brother," he spat out 'little brother' with distaste.

The shorter one glared at the taller. " I don't know why I even considered asking for your help. You're such a jerk!"

The taller one rested a hand on one of the dragon's heads. " I didn't have to come at all, but I was surprised by your plea for my help, that I was curious enough as to see what you needed me for."

Rin could see the hate in each other's eyes. The shorter one crossed his arms in defiance.

"Just go away, I don't want your help anymore, Sesshoumaru."

Sesshoumaru punched the other with a growl. "I didn't travel all this way to hear my annoying little brother tell me what to do. I am Sesshoumaru, and you're just a pathetic half breed loser. To think," he hissed," you think you're better than me. Tell me what you want, because frankly, I need something to be amused at." He gave a mocking smile at his grumbling younger brother.

"I need your help. Kagome was kidnaped and I can't find her."

"Why would I help the Efeu Kingdom? I want to destroy it."

"Whoever took her will destroy Efeu and the kingdoms surrounding it, including yours."

Sesshoumaru laughed incredulously,"No one has even tried to invade my kingdom in over 300 years."

Inuyasha glared at his brother's arrogance,"I don't care! I just want Kagome back. Efeu, my home, is in trouble and I'm asking you for your help."

"Are you desperately asking me, dog boy?" Sesshoumaru again asked in his mocking tone.

At the mention of 'dog boy', Inuyasha's ears on the top of his head twitched. Rin's jaw flew wide open. She hadn't realized the younger brother had fuzzy white ears sticking straight up. In all of her wildest dreams, she had never imagined a boy with dog ears. Now she watched the two with new found interest, and for the first time she wondered where she was.

Inuyasha glared at Sesshoumaru and began to whisper," I hear the sacred sword is in Efeu, if Efeu is destroyed, so will the sword. I would help us if you truly wanted the sword."

There was silence between the two while Sesshoumaru contemplated the situation. Rin shifted her weight, breaking a few thingsthat crackledunderneath her. Sesshoumaru shot a glance in her direction. Terrified, she held her breath, hoping it would hide her from the older man's glare.

"I'll tell you next month my answer," Sesshoumaru said, glancing only once towards her direction.

Protesting, Inuyasha whined at his brother's reply," We don't have that much time! A month is too long. I need to know now!"

Sesshoumaru looked at his brother without emotion, making it impossible to know what he was thinking, if at all. Inuyasha shifted his weight from one leg to another, shooting Sesshoumaru a nervous, impatient glance.

"You say the sword is in Efeu?"

Inuyasha nodded.

" I will help you find your princess, but as long as I get the sword. No sword, no Efeu, got it?"

He nodded again.

"What do you want me to do exactly?"

Inuyasha looked away, embaressed, mumbling a reply. Sesshoumaru's mouth twitched in a second long grin as Inuyasha went on mumbling.

"You want me to track them down?" he laughed," Why? Is it because I'm better than you? I have no human emotions. My senses are far keener than yours because I'm better. Tell me I'm better, dear brother. Tell me I'm the greatest, Inuyasha. Tell me!"

Rin shrank back at his coldness and mocking tone. She could tell how much his words pained and infuriated Inuyasha. He kept his mouth tightly shut, forehead popping, and fist balled at ever word his brother mockingly stated.

"Tell me!" Sesshoumaru hissed.

Inuyasha growled,"Your such and egotistical jerk!"

"Rather that than what you are!" Sesshoumaru yelled with distate, but before Inuyasha could reply, he sternly stated,"We'll get in touch. I have more important matters to take care of."

Inuyasha started to protest.

"You say one word to anyone, this little arrangement is off!" snapped Sesshoumaru.

Minutes later Inuyasha ran steaming away from his older brother. Sesshoumaru loved getting under Inuyasha's skin, and knew he would be fuming about their encounter for days. He watched the dust trail billow away and hopped onto his dragon. Rin let out a sigh of relief to see the dragon lift, and relieved she wasn't discovered. She remembered the cold, heartless words Sesshoumaru told his brother, making her cringe. All she knew was that she never wanted to meet him again. Something about him made her skin crawl with disgust, anger, and a slight bit of fear.

Kicking sticks and rocks, she wandered about the edge of the river. The water smelled sweet and refreshing. She bent down, cupping her hands in the water, and drank. Something across the river caught her attention. Loud gulping, slurping, and splashing echoed towards her. She looked up and saw another dragon, but this one only had one head. The dragon looked up from it's drinking with bored eyes until their glances locked. Rin's jaw dropped while the dragon watched her intensely, neither one of them wanting to look away.

The silence and space between them finally broke when the dragon spoke.

"Hello."

Rin yelped in surprise, and the dragon began to chuckle, flying clumsily towards Rin. She looked up at the dragon in awe and fear as it landed beside her with a thud. The dragon towered over her with an amused look. Ring began to shake, not knowing what to expect next. Was this dragon going to hurt her? She stared wide-eyed as the dragon let out a sigh and plopped down onto the dirt, folding an arm over the other, and rested his chin on top, looking straight at her with his neon yellow eyes.

She began to stutter," Y-y-ou're a d-d-ragon?"

The dragon quirked and eyebrow,"You know, I do have a name."

"Dragons can talk?" she gulped.

He chuckled again,"Some of us can." He chuckled some more,"You act as if you're never met a dragon."

"I haven't," she said honestly.

The dragon shook his head with disbelief," You've got to be joking."

"I've never seen one! I swear! I have seen them on cartoons and movies, but never in real..."she paused, realizing what she was saying," life." _I must be dreaming_, she thought.

"You know," the dragon said thoughtfully,"you're the first human who will talk to me."

Rin quirked an eyebrow,"Are you serious? Why? You seem friendly enough to me."

The dragon looked down in shame,"My tail was cut off. I'm a deformity. The tail is what makes us beautiful, and I don't have one. I'm not the perfection humans see us dragons as."

"That's ridiculous! You're nice."

He grinned showing sharp, pointy teeth," Thank you, that means a lot." He held out a clawed paw towards her. "I'm Frednicio."

She took a claw in her tiny hand and smiled,"I'm Rin."

They sat in silence until he asked a question,"Where are you from?"

"Barnesby," she said quickly,"but you wouldn't know where that is. Actually, I don't even know where I'm at or how I got here." Rin paused," The last thing I remember was a mysterious painting that my boss either painted or kept as a family heirloom."

"Who's that?"

Rin waved the question away,"Old Mr. Tihomirov, you wouldn't know him."

Frednicio took a sudden gasp," As in Tenoh Tihomirov?"

Rin looked around suspiciously," Yeah, that's his name."

The dragon shook his stubby tail in excitement,"You are his apprentice?"

Confused, she looked up at the dragon,"I guess you can call it that."

"This is unbelievable! An apprentice of _the_ Tenoh Tihomirov is talking to me! What is he like? Do you know when he will return?"

Rin stood up and raised her hands, trying to calm down the overly excited dragon. "Whoa! What are you talking about? Return? Mr. Tihomirov does _not_ travel, he's like a bazillion years old!"

"He left us over 300 years ago when I was just a baby. He just got up and disappeared. I may have been a baby then, but as I grew I heard so many wonderful and amazing stories about Tenoh. Some people say he was the Chosen One and believe that some day he will return to us, and we need him now more than ever."

"What do you mean? What's happening?"

He shook his head in disappointment,"It's terrible. There's a war here in Efeu over a silly sword that once belonged to Tenoh. No one knows where the sword is, but some believe it disappeared when Tenoh disappeared. Warrik, an evil sorcerer from Augapfel, the dark city in the northern mountains, believes the sword is here in Efeu, so he's been trying to tear it apart to find it."

She looked at the dragon with surprise,"Efeu? That's what the painting was called! I must be inside the painting!" A grumble from inside her belly made it's way outside and she placed a hand to her stomach as if to suppress the growing rumble. She blushed and looked at Frednicio who returned her with an amused smile.

"I guess I'm kind of hungry. Can you show me where I can find something to eat? I haven't eaten all day!"

"I can tell you how to get to Efeu," Frednicio said with a hint of sadness in his bright neon eyes.

Rin shook her head,"If you just tell me, I will definitely get lost. You will have to take me."

The large dragon sighed apprehensively,"But everyone hates me."

Rin wanted to scream out an "aww" at how cute and pathetic this dragon was. "I don't care what everyone says, and you shouldn't either. No worries, we'll stick together."

The dragon nodded his approval,"Alright, but I must warn you, my flight isn't as smooth and my landing is horrendous."

Rin shrugged,"It's not like I'd know the difference, I've never ridden on a dragon before." She scrambled upon his back, and felt his smooth scales that screamed out a vibrant emerald green that seemed to be harder than diamonds. The scales shimmered in the light. She was mesmerized by how beautiful they were, like thousands of actual jewels incasing his body. She wrapped her legs as far as she could around the large animal and dug her fingers between some scales, which didn't seem to bother Frednicio as his wings began to flap.

"Hold on tightly!" he yelled over the roar of his wings.

She could feel the muscles tighten underneath as he jumped off the ground, and soon they were in the air. He tilted left and quickly tilted to the right as their bodies became further and further from the ground. Higher and higher they went until they were well about the trees, and his jerky movements became less. The rush of his wings brought a smile to her lips. She looked down below and saw the river and the beautiful trees. _This is fun_, she thought,_ This is so much fun!_ She let out a whoop of glee as they passed tree after tree, heading towards a valley at the base of large mountains.

"Are you alright?" he asked with concern,"I heard you yell."

Rin laughed,"I'm perfect!" She let out another holler of excitement.

Farms and tiny cottages could be seen when they arrived at the valley. The closer they got to the mountains, the more cottages seemed to sprout out of the earth. Finally, a town could be seen with roads leading towards the middle of a town square. Tiny dots were bustling about. Closer to the mountain's base a road led up to a castle on the mountains. Rin noticed it was the same castle as the one in the painting.

Frednicio began his decent towards and empty field. They flew closer and closer to the lush green vegetation as he began to tilt and jerk again, trying to make the landing as smooth as possible. They landed with a sudden thud and Rin jumped off with a very large smile from ear to ear.

"That was totally awesome! I've never experienced anything like that ever before!"

He gave a small chuckle,"I will be outside the city. I you need me, just call for me and I will come."

Rin smiled, nodded, and made her way towards the village. The closer and closer she got the sweat smell of fresh roasting meat permeated towards her nostrils making her stomach growl even louder. She prayed that not many people would notice her. As she walked by each house and store, people would look up from their daily duties and stare.

_Find Sango, the seamstress, and buy some clothes first thing when you enter Efeu. You don't want to attract too much attention to yourself,_ Frednicio has told her, but the only problem was, she didn't know where Sango's seamstress hut was located. She wandered about feeling helpless and worried as more people began to stare, some even pointing. Up ahead in a tiny hut a loud curse was heard and a man came running out pleading for a woman's anger to subside.

"You pervert!" she yelled.

The man waved his arms at her in a plea,"Sango, I-" a broom hit him upside the head,"ouch!"

_That's Sango!_ Rin walked towards the pair, and the man quickly noticed her presence, immediately changing his horrified pleading, to a calm lecherous smile.

"Hello, miss." He gave Rin an innocent smile. Sango glared at the man with her arms resting on her hips.

"I'm looking for someone named Sango. I need a new outfit as soon as possible."

Sango took her by the arm and led her inside the hut with the man following closely behind.

"You're not from around here, are you?" the man asked, a little skeptically.

Sango slapped his arm," It's none of your business, Miroku!" She began to look Rin up and down muttering to herself. "How long are you willing to wait for an outfit?"

"I need one as soon as possible."

Sango shook her head and mumbled,"I hate my job." The man, Miroku, sat down in a corner and began snacking on some nuts. Sango saw him and threw her scissors at him. "Stop eating my food, you mooch!"

He looked at the fallen scissors beside him with wide eyes," You could have killed me!"

She rolled her eyes and returned her attention back at Rin, still shaking her head. "I don't know, I could let you borrow some of my clothes, but that's about it if you want something as soon as possible."

"I'll take it!"

Sango shrugged," It's old, dirty, and ragged, but if you really want it I'll give it to you for free."

"I don't care!" Rin answered desperately,"I'll take it!" Sango tossed the ragged clothes at Rin and led her behind a curtain so she could change away from prying eyes. When she was fully dressed, she thanked Sango for her kindness.

"Are you hungry?" Sango asked.

"I'm starved!"

"Good, since you're new, I'll take you to the inn, my treat."

The man got up and stood between them,"Nuh uh, _my_ treat! It would be my pleasure to take two lovely ladies to lunch." He began to lead them outside as Sango rolled her eyes.

The inn was surprisingly quiet. Rin expected to see more people, but their were only a few, and most of them were passed out drunk. Three people ate some food at a table along the edge of the wall, and a man sat in a dark corner, staring at his full glass of ale. She recognized him immediately as one of the men from the woods earlier, but she couldn't remember his name. Miroku led them to a table and sat them down, and after ordering their food and ale, they sat in silence.

_This is boring_, Rin thought.

Miroku looked at Rin nervously and smiled," So where'd you come from?"

_Don't tell anyone where you came from. This is a time of war. You don't know what will happen_, Frednicio's voice echoed in her mind.

"From somewhere far away, I suppose," she said, hoping he would buy the answer and change the subject.

"Where's that?"

Rin began to panic," I don't really remember, but I know it's far enough away, so you wouldn't know it."

Sango looked at the man in the corner and then back at Rin,"I'm sorry if we seem curious, but you a stranger, dressed in weird clothes, in a time of war and rumors of war. We are just a bit paranoid."

Miroku leaned in,"Speaking of wars," his voice became hushed," I heard Princess Kagome was kidnaped by on of Warrik's minions, and our incompetent friend over there, General Inuyasha, did nothing about it."

_Inuyasha! That's the man in the corner's name!_

Sango kicked Miroku and whispered with a hiss," Shut up, fool! She's a foreigner!"

"Who's Warrik?" Rin asked, taking a bite off a greasy turkey leg.

"Some big shot obsessed with too many things, but he'll get his butt kicked when the Chosen One comes back."

Rin nodded,"You mean Tenoh, right?"

He looked at her in shock,"You've heard of him?"

She shrugged,"I know of him."

"Yeah, he's the greatest and most handsome man alive!" Miroku said, which made Rin quirk and eyebrow in surprise.

Sango laughed cynically,"You overrate him, Miroku, he's not coming back. I don't care what you say, he's dead and not coming back."

"He will, but think what you must, my dear."

Their conversation was interrupted when a young man ran, panting inside the inn, covered in blood and mud.

"General Inuyasha, we were attacked by a monster about 5 miles from the city! It's headed straight for us! Luckily a dragon saved me so I could relay this message."

Everyone in the inn went silent, starring at Inuyasha, waiting for his reply.

"Sir, three-fourths of our arm was destroyed!"the young man yelled in desperate hopelessness. "What the hell are we going to do, sir? The monster's too powerful for us! Efeu will surely be destroyed!"

"Shut up," growled Inuyasha,"gather what men we have left and meet me outside the city. We must destroy it."

After Inuyasha and the man left, everyone in the inn sat in shock. Rin wondered what kind of mess she was in. She had never been anywhere near a war, and for the first time since she had found herself in this new place, she was truly scared.

"The monsters are growing stronger. This has to be Warrik's doing, but whatever the case may be, Inuyasha reacted differentely than what I expected he would. He seemed distracted, and not his usual hot headedness."

Sango nodded," I know what you mean. Normally he would barge into the fight as soon as he could without the help of the men of the city or the army."

"Yeah, this could only mean one thing. Princess Kagome was really kidnaped. Why else would he be so distracted? This isn't good. There's something else going on here, though, and I intend on find out what that is exactly."

Remembering the conversation between Inuyasha and his brother earlier in the forest, she felt a since of hopelessness. This Warrik guy means business, and it was starting to scare her. _If only I knew of some way to help these people._

Word about the monster spread around town quickly as people began to panic. Rin followed Sango back to her seamstress hug. The monster, a big ugly lobster thing came crashing towards the town, and somehow the monster was defeated by the measly army Inuyasha led. Though the monster was defeated, Rin believed that the monster was going to be the least of their worries, still remembering that secret conversation she has over heard in the forest. This Warrik guy wasn't going to give up until he found that famous sword that was once owned by the even more famous, Tenoh, the sorcerer.

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**A/N: Well I hope it's getting a little more exciting! BWA!Sorry, character development can be soboring, can't it? I can't wait to start typing up chapter 3! Chapter 3 will be up soon! No worries, my friends! Please review! I love reviews! (I've never had any, but who wouldn't like reviews!) I wanna know what you all think. **


	3. Evils Beware

**A/N: All Inuyasha characters belong to Rumiko Takahashi. **

**The Long Awaited Adventure**

By Ivaliny

Chapter 3

"Evils Beware"

* * *

Kagome lay in her cold, damp cell ontop of dirty, moldy straw, crying softly to herself. A week she had been captured by Warrik, and she thought Inuyasha would have rescued her by now, but no, she was still there, being tortured for information she knew nothing about. Actually, she was a bit surprised she was still there. Yes, she believed in the Chosen One, but usually Inuyasha was ten steps behind her, ready to rescue her in even the toughest situations. 

Remembering what Warrik has said about Efeu being destroyed, a sting of worry stopped her heart. _Was everyone destroyed, was even Inuyasha destroyed as well?_ She wondered.

* * *

Warrik stood in a dark room overlooking the only source of light when a tall, muscular man walked in confidently inside with his head raised high. His eyes were a deep burgundy red while his hair, jet black, stoop up in tall spikes. 

"Ah, Torent, come over and look at this," Warrik said, motioning towards the source of light.

Torent bowed, flashing a pointy, devilish smile,"Of course, milord," and walked over towards his master. Standing besides Warrik, he looked down into a still, glowing pool of water with images moving inside.

"I now know who that white haired boy is, Torent. This changes everything. Inuyasha is his name, the general of the Efeu army," Warrik chuckled,"and he has the sword."

Torent watched in amazement. Warrik's magic always fascinated him. "Forgive my ignorance, milord, but how do you know that weak dog boy has the sword?"

"Because the pool knows and sees all. This pool is connected directly with the two swords of Tenoh."

Torent laughed," Tenoh? Those are just legends told by the human peasants. Besides, there is only one legendary sword."

Warrik shook his head with disappointment," That's where you're wrong, my lizard friend, do you not see the pool? This pool was created by the same magic as everything else in this castle, including Tenoh's two swords."

"This castle was Tenoh the Great's?" Torent asked in bewilderment.

"Yes..." Warrik turned to Torent with and amused, maniacal smile," But I took it from him. I wanted everything that he had, leaving him with nothing, not even his life. He's somewhere dead, a pile of bones and dust, in a dusty cavern, and I took it from him, his trusted apprentice. Now I have his castle, his magic, and power." He balled his fists with an angry scowl,"Everything buy those damn swords. Those swords will determine my victory, and our general Inuyasha will help me."

"But I don't understand, milord, there is only one sword," Torent asked his master, still thinking about the two swords.

"No, there are two. One has the power to destroy anything in it's path with just one swing, and the other can bring the dead back to life from the grave." Warrik sighed, thinking of all the things he could accomplish with both swords."Just think, I will be able to summon any monster or being from the dead, and I will be able to destroy everything in my path, even the powerful Mondlicht kingdom."

Torent nodded, knowing fully the capacities his master would go to get anything he wanted. He looked back down into the pool, pointing at the figures moving about. "Who are those two?" he asked.

Warrik waved away the question,"Some stupid peasants who follow him around. They're nothing to be worried about, if that's what you're asking."

* * *

Rin leaned against Frednicio with a smile. The two had become closer and closer, and soon they were the best of friends. Everyday they would fly off into the sky and find a quiet, peaceful place to be alone, away from the constant talk of the war. The long she had stayed, the more she felt a great dark presence lingering over them all. More monsters had come to attack the almost defenseless Efeu, but each time Inuyasha and his small army of men destroyed them all. She enjoyed the rides, wanting to shrug off the dooming presence she felt around her. They were care free and exciting. 

She has seen Miroku one day, before she went on another flying adventure with Frednicio, and noticed he seemed terribly bored. She offered for him to join their picnic that afternoon, and accepted with an eager, happy smile. Flying across the forest, Rin occasionally moving Miroku's hands off her backside, Frednicio spotted Inuyasha, a tiny white spot in the dense trees. She was amazed at how well his eyesight was, noting that he probably needed such excellent sight for spotting his next meal.

Inuyasha was sitting alone beside a path of wild flowers, gazing into the late morning sky, lost in his thoughts. His hair began to flow in the currents of the dragon's large wings.

"Inuyasha!" Miroku yelled.

"Miroku?" he asked, confusion hinting in his voice,"How did you know where I was?"

"Frednicio saw you through the trees, and we decided to ask if you wanted to join our picnic."

Inuyasha looked at Rin and Frednicio, who were grinning from ear to ear, and shook his head,"I don't think so."

Miroku quirked an eyebrow, hiding his hurt,"And why not?"

"Yeah, we'd really like you to join us. It'll be fun!" Rin piped.

After more persuading, he finally consented to Rin. She situated the picnic next to another path of wild flowers, and soon everyone was situated, surrounding the basket, as Frednicio poked his nose in between for a waft of the food. Every one was soon eating, and Frednicio was nibbling on the steak Rin had prepared for him.

"This is good," Miroku said between bites of the homemade breath."Do I smell pie?"

Rin smiled,"Yes, it was hard to find the ingredients, but eventually found them in the castle."

Inuyasha looked at her with surprise,"You were in the castle?"

"I didn't steal anything if that's what you're asking."

Ignoring the comment, Inuyasha went on eating. It didn't take long before all the food was gone, and everyone had full bellies, except for Frednicio, because it's very hard to keep a dragon full. They sat in silence, lost in their own thoughts. Rin stared at Miroku, who was becoming more and more fidgety.

"Is something wrong, Miroku? You've been acting strange ever since we'd left Efeu."

"Oh, I just...do you feel like we're being watched?"

Inuyasha shifted his weight,"I know what you're talking about. I've felt it, too."

Rin shook her head,"I don't feel anything but the nice breeze."

He sighed,"That's what I'm afraid of."

Confused, Rin waited for him to explain. "Afraid of what?"

"Someone's trying to probe our minds, and that someone is probably Warrik."

"Warrik?" Inuyasha asked, ready for a fight," Where is he?"

He gave a hopeless sigh," I don't know, but he's definitely watching us."

"Where is he!" Inuyasha asked desperately with a growl.

"I have a theory. I think he's hiding in Tenoh's castle."

"No one knows where that is," Inuyasha growled with annoyance.

"I do," Miroku announced,"or at least I used to."

Inuyasha was ready to hit Miroku."What the hell are you talking about?" he roared.

Miroku looked from Inuyasha to Rin and gave an exasperated groan. "I guess I have been avoiding the subject for too long. I'm sick and tired of seeing everyone I know and the land I love suffer. I should have told someone the truth sooner, but I was scared it would jeopardize everything I've worked for."

"What are you talking about," Rin asked, giving her new friend a confused, but intrigued expression.

Inuyasha growled with impatience,"The truth? What have been keeping from us, Miroku?"

He rubbed the back of his neck and blushed,"It's pretty unbelievable."

Rin frowned,"Try me. I believe in the unbelievable."

Miroku chuckled,"I know, that's why I'm so sure of what I'm going to tell you, although I know Inuyasha wont believe me." He took in a deep breath and began.

"You know how many people believe that Tenoh Tihomirov is the 'Chosen One'?"

Inuyasha nodded,"Yeah, Kagome believes that will all of her heart."

Miroku nodded solemnly,"Well, she and every one else who believe that are wrong, because I am Tenoh."

Inuyasha's eye began to twitch,"Stop fooling around, jerk, Tenoh is old, and you're definitely not old."

Clearing his throat, Miroku took a sip of tea,"Maybe I should start from the beginning. Inuyasha, I am indeed a very, very old man. When I was way younger, in the prime time of my sorcery, I was cockey and arrogant, I truly believed the prophecy of the 'Chosen One' to be trued, because I believed I was he. But one day my mind set changed when I was defeated and almost killed in a battle against my apprentice, whom I taught everything I knew, maybe I taught him too much. He left me to die, stealing my powers and everything I had, in an old cavern. Weakened, and barely able to move, I lay there remembering an alternate universe I had discovered one day in my seeking pool. This place intrigued me when I first discovered it, and I decided to travel there, to regain my strength I had lost in the battle." He looked over at Rin. "The place was large, new and beautiful. I lived off the land and grew to love my new home. Soon people began to settle and times changed. Several wars broke out between the men in the country and surrounding countries, and then about a hundred years ago, I settled into a quiet farming town that reminded me of Efeu. I set up my own business and became one of the wealthiest men in town, but the town reminded me so much of Efeu, that twenty years ago, I disguised myself as a young main, painted a magical painting for the portal between both worlds, and crossed through as Miroku."

Inuyasha rolled over on the blanket, laughing,"Now you're just being stupid!" he hooted.

"I had a feeling you wouldn't believe me, Inuyasha," he added with a disappointed frown,"I guess under the circumstances I'll have to show you."

Right before their eyes, Miroku's young, smooth skin, and jet black hair turned wrinkly and gray. Rin brought a hand to her mouth in surprise. Miroku was indeed Tenoh Tihomirov, her boss. It all made sense now. That's why old Mr. Tihomirov never aged, it's because he has magical power. Inuyasha looked at his friend in shock and disbelief.

"You mean to tell me you're really that old?"

The old man in front of them gave a nervous laugh,"Heh, I guess so, but does age really matter?"

Inuyasha began to laugh again,"Wait till Sango finds out that the man who hits on her is an ancient, decrepit, worthless, old man!"

"No!" he said desperately as he changed back into Miroku."You can't tell anyone!"

"It's just a little shocking, that's all. Actually this explains why no one has seen you that much these past few years. You've been traveling back and forth through worlds, haven't you? But I don't understand why."

Miroku nodded,"I was coming to that. It's actually the reason why I told you both this ,although, it was mostly for Rin's benefit. When I first came back to Efeu twenty years ago, I had noticed how dark it had become. A normal person probably couldn't have noticed the change, but I did. There was a dark aura bubbling up over the countryside, and I knew I had to do something, but there was nothing I could do. That last battle wiped out most of my memory. I had no idea how to get back to my castle where my secrets were kept. So I spent more and more time in Efeu trying to get answers as to where the castle was located. I knew my powers would not return to me in time, if at all, so I also began looking for a new apprentice here in Efeu to teach everything I knew to, again. I knew it was risky because of what happened last time, but there was no other way. I had to teach someone my methods."

"Oh, so you found someone?" Rin asked curiously.

Miroku smiled and nodded, opening his jaw in a response, but was interrupted by a shrill obnoxious voice wobbling towards them.

"Inuyasha!" it said, obviously extremely annoyed, with his eyes narrowed.

Inuyasha raised an eyebrow,"Yeah, what do you want, toad?"

"Milord, Sesshoumaru," he said smugly,"wants to see you immediately."

"What?" Inuyasha asked with annoyance at the servant, grumbling curses to himself, remembering his brother's arrangement.

"Fine!" he said,"tell that jerk I'll be there as soon as I can in a few days."

The servant grew impatient with anger, his little toady hands shook his staff violently at Inuyasha,"You insolent half breed! Lord Sesshoumaru wants you there by tonight!"

"Tonight! How the hell am I supposed to get there by tonight? It's two days away!"

"Inuyasha," Miroku interrupted,"Isn't Sesshoumaru your brother, you know, the really powerful one?"

Inuyasha's eyes twitched,"Yeah, what of it?"

_Sesshoumaru?_ Rin pondered, _he was that man Inuyasha was fighting with when I first arrived here._ She frowned,_ he was so rude and arrogant! I already hate him_

"We will accompany you," Miroku stated,"Perhaps Frednicio will give us a lift." Frednicio nodded his consent at the suggestion.

Inuyasha flailed his arms about in protest,"No way! This is between me and my brother!"

"But we could help you."

Inuyasha huffed in aggravation,"Help me? How? You're a decrepit has been wizard!"

"You're right, that's why Rin will help you."

"What?" Rin blinked in shock at hearing her name. "How can I help? I'm just a clumsy girl."

Miroku just stared unblinkingly, and expressionless until she finally caught onto what he was saying Rin laughed in response.

"Me? I'm your apprentice?" She shook her head still in disbelief and laughing," But why? I know nothing about magic."

"You may not know now, but you will, maybe not all of it, but you will." Rin gave him a blank stare. "When Inuyasha saves Kagome, he'll mostly likely have to fight Warrik."

Inuyasha crossed his arms,"So what, I can defeat him!"

Miroku shook a disapproving finger at him,"You may be good with a sword, but is skilled in sorcery you know nothing about. You will need someone with powers to match him."

Rin began to panic,"What? I have to fight against Warrik? But he defeated you! You're sending me to my death, Miroku!"

He placed a reassuring hand on her shoulders," You'll be fine, Rin. I have complete faith in you." He looked over at Inuyasha,"We should be going, Inuyasha, it's almost noon."

"Hey! I didn't say you were going!" Inuyasha yelled, stamping his foot childishly.

Miroku helped Rin up on Frednicio's back and hopped on behind her. "How else will you get there before nightfall?"

Inuyasha's jaw dropped in defeat and slumped his shoulders as he looked over at Frednicio's smug smile, and moodily hopped on the dragon's back as well. Soon they were soaring the air towards the West. A look of dread on Rin's face as she wondered exactly what she was doing soaring in the air with her new friends heading closer to an almost certain dangerous, possibly deadly, adventure.

_I wanted an adventure, now I've got it, and I'm going to die!_ She mentally kicked herself, _And, I have to see that pompous Sesshoumaru!_ She let out a painfully deep sigh.

"Just my luck," she muttered bitterly under her breath.

* * *

**A/N: Welp, that's Chapter 3 dances. I hoped you all liked it. It was a long, somewhat dull chapter to write, but I liked it nonetheless. Chapter 4 will be typed soon. Yay! Finally Sesshoumaru will be in the picture! boogie boogie! Please leave reviews! I want to see what you all have thought of this story so far! Thanks!**


	4. Stoic Company

**A/N: All Inuyasha characters belong to Rumiko Takahashi! .**

**The Long Awaited Adventure**

By Ivaliny

Chapter 4

"Stoic Company"

* * *

Frednicio flew as fast as he could with the extra added weight, but they eventually arrived in the Mondlicht countryside, ruled by the cold-hearted dog demon, Sesshoumaru. For centuries this country was one of the most powerful, and when Sesshoumaru took over it became even more powerful, famous for it's ruthless and more than horrifying leader. Only fools considered attacking Mondlicht, Miroku had explained to Rin on their way to the kingdom while Inuyasha snorted his disgust towards his brother and his kingdom, leaving Rin with an unsettling fear of what is ahead of them.

"Lord Sesshoumaru hates humans, and wants only to destroy them, seeing them as an infectious, weakening disease," Miroku further explained. "He's blood thirsty for human blood and power."

Glaring, Rin interrupted him,"Why are you telling me this? Are you trying to frighten me?"

He shrugged,"I'm just informing you for the future. I just want you to beware of his nature."

"The future? Speaking of the future, aren't I supposed to be learning some tricks or something?" she asked with irritation. "But I still don't see how or why you picked me to be your apprentice."

"Did I not tell you that already?" She shook her head.

"It must have slipped my mind." He shrugged it off and cleared his throat. She found he did that often before and during a story. "I remember the first time I saw you. You were about five or six, and you came giggling and running inside the store with money in your hand and Artemis attached to the other. You were both giggling and excited about purchasing a package of gum with your own money."

Rin smiled,"Yeah! I remember that! You gave us free lollipops." She laughed at the memory,"And Artemis ask you for more."

Miroku chuckled,"Yes. When I first saw you try to open the heavy door, I was swept back by and illuminating, energetic force coming from you. You were so small, filled with hope, compassion, and determination. I knew you were the one. You were immature and young at the time, so I decided to wait until you were older. To my surprise, however, you seemed to have found your destiny on your own, and I knew you were the one when I saw you wandering, a bit confused, through Efeu."

Frowning, she gave a teasing sigh,"Alright, I guess I'll accept that, but I think you have the wrong person. But you don't have to worry, though, I'll play along with this story for the time being."

"Excellent! That's all I ask."

They were silent for a while, watching the sunk sink slowly into it's nightly slumber. It was truly beautiful. Rin loved watching the sun set and was immediately reminded of the painting of Efeu that had brought her to this place. She wondered if the painting was setting the sun at that moment, but Frednicio interrupted her pleasant thoughts.

"We're close to the castle," he informed. Rin was amazed and wondered how he knew that. It was dark and only silhouettes were marking a path below them. But faintly up ahead, she saw tiny flickers of orange light surrounding a large, dark splotch in the distance. Soon the tiny flickers became large flames, lighting up the castle. She could feel Frednicio slow down and soon they were diving towards the ground. The rush of the decent sent adrenaline cascading over her body. This was her favorite part about flying with Frednicio, reminding her of roller coasters at Six Flags.

They landed clumsily, with several large thuds from Frednicio's massive feet, and a jarring jerk right in front of the castle gates. Gaurds armed with swords came shouting at them.

"What business do you have with Lord Sesshoumaru?" asked a guard rather forcefully, while Rin, Miroku, and Inuyasha piled off of the large dragon. Inuyasha pushed his way to the guards.

"Get out of my way. My business is my business," Inuyasha replied hotly, but the guard wouldn't let him pass, pushing him in the chest.

"Half demons have no business here," the guard snarled.

Inuyasha's hands twitched, aching for a fight. "If you want it that way, fine, because I don't mind killing a few demons." But before Inuyasha could charge, Miroku intervened.

"Do you really want to kill all of his guards when you're about to beg for his help?" he asked logically.

Inuyasha growled," I'm not going to beg!" He looked at the guards, lustful for their dead flesh in his claws. To Rin, Miroku had brought up a good point. Killing Sesshoumaru's guards would only provoke more trouble worth than having, she just hoped Inuyasha would listen.

In his battle stance, Inuyasha gave a pained, unwilling sigh, and slumped his shoulders, backing down from the fight. "I'm not doing this for you, Miroku, even though I would enjoy killing those bastards, I'll do it for Kagome," he said through gritted teeth.

Miroku nodded and turned towards the alert, defensive demons. "We're here to see Lord Sesshoumaru. His servant summoned us."

"What servant?" a guard asked.

He looked back at Rin for help in remembering what the small demon looked like and shrugged."A toad of some kind."

"Ah, Master Jaken," a guard murmured to another and looked at the three. "We were informed of your arrival, but weren't expecting your for a few more days."

"You wouldn't," growled Inuyasha under his breath.

"Milord is waiting. You can go in."

Miroku bowed and walked past the guards with Rin and Inuyasha following behind. Rin's heart was racing with anticipation as they walked into the front courtyard. She imagined just how nervous Inuyasha must have been feeling and saw that he wore a bored, unimpressed expression with his arms crossed, which surprised her.

A servant met them in the courtyard and began to lead the three to Sesshoumaru. His castle was impressive, and very clean. For some reason, Rin concentrated on the fact that the castle was very clean. They were led to what appeared to be a study. Books and important documents were strewn about in an organized mess. Their wasn't waiting for them in the room, which was making her a bit nervous. The servant glared at the three before he left the room.

Miroku walked around the room, nosing about the papers on the desk, reading letters, and touching his stuff curiously, while Inuyasha stood impatient and annoyed. Rin watched as his eyebrows furrowed and his ears twitched. She couldn't put a finger on it, but she grew even more nervous by the second. Why wouldn't she? From all she had heard from Miroku, she should be peeing on herself right then. Only hoping her nerves weren't showing, she gave a deep and heavy sigh, which shook her whole body.

"Nervous?" Miroku asked, glancing up from a book from across the room.

Rin shook her head in a lie, giving a quiet chuckle to release the tension pressured up in her body. Suddenly a tall, glaring man opened the door and slammed it shut behind him.

"Inuyasha, I wasn't expecting you so soon,"he spat in mockery.

"Shut up!"

Sesshoumaru looked at Miroku and Rin with cold, narrowed eyes. "I see you already broke our agreement. Too bad."

"I didn't tell them anything," Inuyasha yelled defensively," your stupid toad blurted out that you wanted to see me in front of them!"

The tall man sat down at his dark mahogany desk, leaned over and rubbed his temples."So those humans just decided to follow you?" He growled, sharp, golden eyes glaring,"Now the whole house is in gossip mode about humans in the castle. Do you know how disgusting, and terribly difficult this will be to clean up this mess?"

Rin made a slight "eep" sound, putting her hands on her hips defensively. "We're here to help!"

Sesshoumaru shot a deadly glare at Rin, and with a controlled, but obviously annoyed and angered voice, he spoke slowly with irritation towards her. "I am Sesshoumaru, Lord of Mondlicht, and I do not need help from a scrawny, human girl."

Rin glared at the demon in front of her. _Scrawny? I'm not scrawny! That jerk is going to pay!_

Miroku made a nervous chuckle and stood between Rin and Sesshoumaru, seeing the potential fight in front of him. "Please forgive her, milord," he said mustering up all of his sucking up powers, which made Rin stare at him in disgust. "Just listen to what I have to say first before you rip her apart," Rin huffed, not pleased with his words. "Please, milord."

Sesshoumaru's face returned to a bored, unimpressed expression, which Rin could see a family resemblance between the two brothers. He slightly narrowed his eyes at the black haired man. "Speak."

"I am Miroku, and this is my apprentice, Rin. We're sorcerers from Efeu," he paused to see if there was any reaction in the demon's face, but there wasn't, "We know Inuyasha will fight Warrik, but there are things that swords cannot accomplish alone, so we are accompanying him to help him on his journey."

"I do not travel with humans," he simply stated.

Inuyasha jumped into the coversation,"Well you'll have to!"

"Did I say I was going to accompany you?"

His little brother's jaw dropped, but tightened quickly in anger,"Then why the hell did you make us come here?"

"To see you suffer."

Inuyasha growled deep in his chest, trying to figure out the best way to tear his snobbish brother to pieces. Rin wanted to join in on the tearing apart of the older demon, loathing his arrogance.

"If I were to go, I'd want to know where exactly the swords are, otherwise I'll let you sniff out the castle on your own," he smirked.

Inuyasha said nothing for a long moment. "You want to know _exactly _where it's located?"

"I want the sword! No sword, no deal, remember?"

In hopeless defeat he yelled,"I don't know where the damn swords are!"

Sesshoumaru's eyes narrowed," I knew you were lying, disgusting half-breed."

"Who cares about those stupid swords anyways, you have plenty!" He gave a sigh which shook his whole body in defeated agony," but, if you want them so much, I'll find them after I get Kagome, and Efeu is safe."

Rin's heart broke for Inuyasha. "Efeu will never be safe. No sword, no deal," he gave a low grumble and looked at a pile of papers on his desk. "Now get out, you've wasted my time."

"Wait!" Miroku yelled,"I know where the sword is!"

"Shut up, Miroku! I don't need Sesshoumaru's help anyways. I don't even know why I asked him for his help in the first place."

Sesshoumaru watched in mild interest at the human. "I remember where it's at. That's one thing I'm sure of, because I need them as well."

Inuyasha glared at Miroku," What? You knew where the sword was and you never told me!"

He shrugged," You never asked. Actually, we need the swords, which is whole reason I need to find the castle."

Inuyasha exploded,"The sword is in the castle? Then why hell is Warrik attacking Efeu if it's in the castle!"

"Guess he hasn't found it yet," he shrugged the chuckled to himself. "It's kind of funny, actually, the sword is right out in the open."

Rin stared at the two in utter confusion. _What sword? What's the big deal about a sword?_ She asked herself and decided to ask Miroku about it later as not look like an idiot infront of them. Sesshoumaru looked at the two in bored annoyance.

"So where is the sword?" he asked.

"In Tenoh's castle," Miroku stated.

The corners of Sesshoumaru's mouth turned into a jeer,"Tenoh? That stupid sorcerer? How do you know?"

"Let's just say I knew him."

Sesshoumaru sighed in frustration,"Where is the castle?"

Miroku huffed out a sigh of frustration as well,"If I knew that, then I would already have it."

"You lie," he glared.

Miroku was offended. "I would never!"

"I don't trust humans."

Inuyasha growled again and slammed his fist down on his brother's desk in anger. "Well you'll have to, if you want the sword!" Sesshoumaru was silent, staring at the print his brother's fist had made. Rin shifted nervously, not know what to expect next, but she was sure it had something to do with pain.

"Warrik is rumored to have his fortress way up north in the mountains of Augapfel," Sesshoumaru informed them with an expressionless face, which was hard to understand what he was getting at.

"Possibly where Tenoh's castle is,"Miroku added. Sesshoumaru said nothing for a while, leaving an unpleasant silence before them, and stood up.

"We leave before dawn tomorrow on foot," he stated, but Inuyasha quickly interjected.

"What? On foot! That'll take at least a month, maybe even more in the mountains! If we take the dragons, we can make it in half the time."

"You fool,"Sesshoumaru snapped,"Do you want Warrik to know we're coming? It's easier to fight his armies on the ground than in the air."

Rin heard the word fight, making her stomach curl in worry. She knew nothing about fighting, and still wondered if Miroku's assessment of her being his apprentice was true, and not just out of desperation. Plus, the fact that she had to travel on foot already made her tired.

"I will have rooms arranged for you, so I suggest you get plenty of rest," he slightly growled and left the room. Soon a servant came in and showed them where they were to sleep. Rin saw her room and noticed the simple bed and immediately felt exhausted. She didn't care if her room had no bed at all, all she wanted to do was sleep. Before she climbed in underneath the blankets, Miroku came in and wished her a good night. She smiled and thanked him. The stress of what lay before her hit her like a thousand bricks, and she began to cry before her mind nodded off into dreamland.

* * *

**A/N: Okay yeah, I'm "wooting" because Sesshoumaru is NOW in the story, hopefully full time! Please send your reviews! Like always, I want to know what you all thought of this chapter, and how the story is going. Thank you so much for reading! Chapter 5 is now being typed up! (Chapter 5 is so far my favorite chapter! Hehe!) I'll just tell you what Chapter 5's title is: "Flying Sticks of Possible Disembowlment" BWAHAHA! Okay now seriously, send reviews! Love yas!**


	5. Flying Sticks of Possible Disembowelment

**A/N: All Inuyasha characters belong to Rumiko Takahashi!**

**The Long Awaited Adventure**

By Ivaliny

Chapter 5

"Flying Sticks of Possible Disembowelment"

* * *

Miroku had come into her room and woken her up after what seemed like only a few minutes of closing her eyes for sleep. He was cheery and smiling from ear to ear, which Rin found surprisingly pleasant. She never had been a morning person, but since Miroku was in such a good mood, it filled her morning with hope, and after finally rubbing away her crusty tears from her eyes, she even was excited about the start of their journey. Well, that dwindled away when they all met in the front courtyard where Inuyasha's stoic and slightly impatient brother waited, which make Inuyasha's surprisingly good mood vanish as well, leaving behind a dreary gray cloud above their heads.

Sesshoumaru led them out the front gate, stiff and rigid with his nose high up in the sky. Rin wondered with a disgusted frown if having his nose so high was for catching the scents, or if he just loved being an ass. He walked at a fast pace, causing Miroku and Rin to slightly job to keep up. The farther they got from the castle, Rin wondered if she could do this for a month of longer. By high noon her feet were sore, her stomach was growling, and she had wished she hadn't coaxed Frednicio to follow above. _A good long ride on his back would be so good right now_, she thought with a long, tired sigh.

She looked behind her at Inuyasha who seemed to walk casually behind her, arms crossed, lost in a day dream world. The hard, fast pace of Sesshoumaru seemed to not have any effect on him, and Rin wished she had that kind of energy. She wasn't a complainer, but inside her head she was screaming for Sesshoumaru to slow down, but her silent pleading went unnoticed as his back was still rigid and tense.

"How are you fairing?" Miroku asked, noticing her discomfort.

"My feet hurt and I'm hungry, but I guess I'm okay."

Miroku smiled,"You'll get used to it."

Rin rolled her eyes,"He's never going to stop!"

He chuckled,"He might not." Rin gave a slight, displeased groan. "So, are you ready to start learning some spells?"

She choked back her non-existant spit,"What, right now!"

Sesshoumaru, some 15 feet ahead, slowed down his pace, still rigid, turned his head to the side and looked at the two humans, which sent chills down her spine. He narrowed his eyes at them, then turned around facing forward again, picking up his before pace.

"Why not now?" Miroku added. "We have nothing better to do." He bent down, picked up a stick, and handed it to her. She looked at it, puzzled, wondering what she would have to do with a stick. "Close your eyes," he ordered. "Concentrate really hard." She did as ordered and scrunched her nose to show she was concentrating, which made Miroku smile in amusement.

"Now yell, 'Fetch, Inuyasha!'"

A growl and projectile rock from behind hit Miroku in the head. "I heard that, you jerk!"

Miroku rubbed the lump on his head and began to laugh," I had to see if you were a live somehow, didn't I?"

"Mm, whatever," Inuyasha grumbled.

Returning his attention back to Rin, Miroku said, "Now seriously, place the stick flat on your palm and concentrate on lifting it up in the air with your mind."

She quirked and eyebrow at the blue-eyed man beside here,"What?"

"Just do it,"he said, still equipped with a smile from the lame joke he had placed on his dog-eared friend.

* * *

"How have my monsters been doing, tearing up Efeu?" Warrik asked Torent, shoving meat into his mouth and draining his goblet of wine.

Torent's face grew angry, not wanting to be the one who was the bearer of bad news. "Not well, milord, Efeu's pathetic excuse of an army has somehow defeated each one of the monsters, leaving little damage to the city."

"What?" roared Warrik, slamming his goblet down on the table. "How is that possible? Those were some of my best!" Warrik motioned for more wine and a servant filled his cup,"What about the spied? Have they found Inuyasha and the swords?"

Torent stood beside his master and shook his head,"No, milord, but some have reported that they saw him fly off towards the west. Have you not been able to locate them through the pool?"

Warrik grumbled,"Something is blocking him, and I can't get around it." He sat there chewing his food and thinking. "To the West you say? Perhaps he's going to Mondlicht to see Lord Sesshoumaru. I hear they're brothers." He went silent again.

"Fetch me the 'Breathers and have them fly to Mondlicht and pay the notorious Lord and his brother a little visit. Have them find Inuyasha and bring him to me as soon as possible." Warrik wiped him mouth and stood up from the table,"and in the meantime, I'll pay another visit to our Princess Kagome. I know she knows more than what she's letting us know."

Torent bowed and left his master alone in the dining hall. He cringed at the thought of summoning the 'breathers. "Stupid 'Breathers, always so damn noesy."

* * *

Sesshoumaru slowed down his pace for the humans with annoyance. He wasn't totally bored, but his company wasn't coming up with any real interesting coversations. He was used to the mindless dribble of his faithful servant, Jaken. It wasn't like him to miss his servant, but for a while he did, which only irritated him more. He felt a headache coming on a little before noon. He had to keep reminding himself why he was traveling with these three: Tenoh's sword. Dreaming of what he could do with the sword, he walked almost in a trance, until he was snapped back to reality by Miroku's question.

"So, are you ready to start learning some spells?" he had asked.

_What?_ Sesshoumaru had wondered,_ I thought he said they were sorcerers. He did mention the girl was an apprentice, but I didn't know she was a brand new one. _He turned his head to look at the two, narrowing his eyes. He saw the girl's eyes widen in what looked like fear, but it quickly turned into a glare, so he turned his head back around.

_Damnit, this is going to be a long journey_, and his headache exploded even more, but he ignored it, making his face a look of boredom and walked on.

Now hours had passed since Miroku had first told her to move the stick from her palm. He could hear her aggrivated sighs, her huffs and puffs of distress, and grew even more irritated. _A quick slice to the throat would make it quiet_. Telling she was tired, which for some reason made her work even harder, he decided to find a suitable place to make camp, hoping it would keep her quiet, but also dissapointing him that now they would far behind schedule. _That's expected_, he reasoned,_ humans are weak,_ and not for the first time, he cursed them.

Intently focused upon trying to levitate the stick she now hated, Rin hadn't noticed the long, silver-  
haired demon in front of them stop until she walked straight into his back. Quickly, she threw the stick behind her and looked at the demon slightly embarrassed and slightly in fear. He made no indication of their collision, but looked down at her, and in a monotone voice announced they were to make camp.

Quickly, Inuyasha and Miroku gathered up firewood and made a fire. Sesshoumaru stood about 10 feet away, next to a tree, watching without interest. Once the fire was big enough, Rin sat down next to it with a heavy sigh. Her feet were screaming for a massage, but for some reason she felt slightly reluctant to massage them in front of the men. _What if it shows I'm weak, _she pondered, and decided she would not touch her feet, and live with the dull ache. Actually, she was quite surprised that Sesshoumaru decided on making camp so early. The sun had just begun to set, and she thought they would have traveled more in the dark, because he seemed to not want to waste any more time than necessary.

Miroku opened up the pack of supplies he had gathered at Sesshoumaru's castle that held all of their food for the journey. "Rin, make the food while Inuyasha and I gather more firewood." He put a hand on her shoulder,"Don't forget to keep practicing your levitating while we're gone. We shouldn't be too long."

Rin rolled her eyes, wishing she didn't have to."Don't get mad at me if your food is burnt."

Inuyasha made a grumbling noise,"Aw, man! Not the food!"

The sorcerer snorted,"You and your food." He gave and exhausted sigh. "I'll make the food when we come back with the firewood,"he paused,"unless Lord Sesshoumaru would like to make the food."

Sesshoumaru turned his head slightly towards them, expressionless. "I don't eat."

"Don't worry, I wont burn the food! I was just teasing," Rin stated with a grin.

The two boys left to look for more firewood and Rin began to cook some bland looking pasta. While the was the boiling a small pot, out of the corner of her eye she saw Sesshoumaru sit down and lean up against the tree he was standing next to. He was so quiet, it almost annoyed her. They sat in uncomfortable silence while she practiced levitating the stick, which seemed almost impossible, but she persevered on. Concentrating so hard this time she flet as if this would be the moment where the stick would hoover off her hand, and it did. It hung in suspended animation. She held her breath with excitement, too afraid to breath just in case the waft of air would knock the stick out of it's levitating trance.

"You were the spy in the woods the other day, weren't you?"

Too excited, too scared, too shocked, her concentration on the stick broke and somehow, someway, the stick flew across the fire as she let out a nervous,"huh?"

A smack and a thunk was heard from across her, and to her horror she figured out what it was: stick crashing against skull. She couldn't see him behind the fire, but her stomach sunk to the ground in dread.

His eyes widened, obviously caught off guard by the invading stick attacking his cranium. _Did her annoying stick just hit me in the head?_

Rin gave an embarrassed giggle,"Eh, oops." _Oh no! He knows I was spying on him, but how?_

Expecting to be disemboweled at any moment, already mourning the loss of her entrails as her extrails, she closed her eyes, holding her breath for the painful blow to come, but it never did. He said nothing, did nothing as Rin played the horrible ways she was going to be a human shish kabob, but nothing happened.

"Can I have my stick back?" Rin asked impatiently, but still slightly nervous.

No answer.

Suspicious and relieved, she concluded that stick levitating was annoying anyways, and now she could fully concentrate on her cooking, which paid off in the end. Just before the boys came back with the firewood, she finished her perfectly bland pasta noodles.

"We have returned with firewood," announced Miroku victoriously.

Inuyasha tossed the firewood in a pile,"Yeah, and we're starving!"

"Just in time,"Rin said with a smile.

Soon the three of them were seated around the fire slurping down the pasta, sitting in companiable silence. Rin was glad she had this opportunity to go on an adventure with her new friends, even if she did complain, and found that just sitting with them was just fun enough. She looked behind her Sesshoumaru's direction and noticed he was still staring up towards the sky with almost a thoughtful expression illuminated by the moon. For the first time he looked almost a pleasant, at least until he returned her stare with a snobbish glare. _He's impossible to figure out!_

"Where's your stick, Rin?" Miroku asked.

She turned around with eyes wide open, "Well, I made it levitate, but I don't know where it levitated to." _Ha! Yeah I do, it levitated towards Sesshoumaru's head_. She giggled at the thought.

Ignoring her giggling, he smiled,"Excellent! Show me! It took me 3 days to learn how to do that!"

She picked up another stick and rested it on her palm. _Please work! No more levitating stick after this, so please work!_ She pleaded with the stick. Behind her, she heard Sesshoumaru get up and walk away from them. _Why is he so high and mighty? _She asked herself, and without even noticing through her heightened emotions towards Sesshoumaru, the stick flew off her palm and back behind her.

"Sorry, I don't know how to control-" and before she could finish her sentence, a grunt was heard behind her. _Oh no! Not again!_ She gasped.

Behind her a clawed hand with two stripes across the wrist appeared in her peripheral vision. She lout out a silent "eep" as her heart stopped. Then she noticed the hand wasn't going to slice her open, but drop the stick in her lap. She looked up at him with wide eyes, directly up his nose. _Oh wow, it's so clean!_

"Th-thank you," she stuttered, trying to ignore the fact she was still staring up his nose.

"Please," he paused, showing his irritation,"control the stick." He turned around and walked away.

Miroku's jaw dropped,"I feel like I missed something."

Rin gave an embarrassed smile, blushing bright red.

"Right, no more hitting Sesshoumaru with sticks," and with that he grabbed all the sticks around her and threw them away, finishing his pasta noodles. "Before bed, I must tell you something first. First, to be a great sorceress, you must know the limits of your emotions. There are some things that can be benefitted by emotions, but some times it can lead to disaster. Emotions can be a very powerful thing. I just want you to be very careful. Already, I see great things in you. Just be careful." He pulled out a blanket from the pack and got it situated for sleep. "Now, get some rest tonight, we'll have a long day tomorrow."

Rin nodded and watched as he crawled underneath and closed his eyes. She cleaned up their supper and washed the dishes in the stream when she was startled by Inuyasha when he appeared beside her, handing her a stick.

"Mind doing that again?" he grinned. She burst into laughter as he joined in, both of their bodies shaking with the overcoming laugher inside of them.

* * *

**A/N: Welp, that's Chapter 5! This still is probably my favorite chapter! I had great joy in throwing sticks at Sesshoumaru, can you tell? hehe! Yes, it was always my dream to throw sticks at Sesshoumaru. J/K! But anywhoo! Chapter 6 is an exciting chapter, so i'll start typing that tomorrow! YAY! If anyone cares, Chapter 6 is called "When Nightmares Come True". Thanks for reading this, and send your comments and reviews, because i loveth them so much! Oh and before i forget, thank you to all of you who have left reviews! Thank you!**


	6. When Nightmares Come True

**A/N: All Inuyasha characters belong to Rumiko Takahashi! **

**The Long Awaited Adventure**

by Ivaliny

Chapter 6

"When Nightmares Come True"

* * *

"_Help me!"_ _came a blood curdling scream from inside the forest._

_Slithering, hissing, gnashing, effortlessly intertwining their large bodies through the forest following the scream, their claws reached forward._

"_Get down!" yelled a commanding voice from above._

_She screamed again,"Help me!" and dove down to the ground. Looking behind her she saw fierce golden eyes coming closer._

Rin woke up gasping for air, sweat dripping off her body as a cold chill swept over her. Looking around the quiet campsite, she realized it was only a terrible dream. She let out a sigh of relief and rubbed her eyes, then began to sooth her pounding temples. Her dream seemed so real. So real, she thought she could feel and smell the monsters' breath on her neck. So real, the golden eyes seems comforting and familiar.

Around her, her friends were peacefully sleeping in the early morning cool air. Inuyasha's fuzzy ears were twitching, and Miroku was cuddling his blanket with a smile, both lost in the dream world around their weakening campfire. She smiled at the two, slipping out from underneath her own blanket to stretch her legs noticing Sesshoumaru still hadn't returned. Quietly, she stumbled her way towards the stream's edge, knelt down, cupping her hands in the refreshingly cool water, and splashed it onto her face. The water felt good on her sweaty skin, heart still racing from the nightmare. She let out a dramatic sigh, shaking the water off her hand as she stood up.

"Rin," a voice from the forest stated enthusiastically.

She jumped, noticing a large dragon shaped shadow,"Freddy?"

She shadow chuckled,"I was surprised to see you at such a late hour."

He shoulders slumped,"I couldn't sleep."

"Why not? Don't you humans always need your beauty sleep?"

Rin blushed,"I had a nightmare."

"Oh,"he nodded with understanding,"do you mind telling me what it was about?" She walked towards him, and sat down, leaning against his strong, massive dragon body.

"It was scary! I was being chased by two snake like monsters that could fly. They were super fast and so real! They made hissing noises in the back of their throats, and they smelled like burning sulfur."

"'Breathers?" he interrupted thoughtfully. " They're the fastest dragons that can travel from the north to the south in just a few days. They're equipped with the ability to breathe fire." Frednicio snorted,"Some dragons get everything, but not me, no, I get diddly squat." Rin smiled and placed a hand on his arm comfortingly.

"It's not like I'd want to be a 'breather though, because all of them work for Warrik." Rin swallowed back the lump in her throat caused by the mentioning of his name.

"Do you think my dream could come true? I've always heard that some do. Do you think this is on of them?" She asked, a little frightened by what answer he could tell her.

She felt his shoulders shrug,"Who knows. I know you're gifted with many talents," Rin frowned,"but I do not know if foretelling the future through dreams is something that you can do. You'd have to ask Miroku about that." She let out a heavy sigh, worried about Warrik and his 'breathers. So many people were counting on her to defeat him, and she felt hopeless. She hadn't even mastered the stick properly, and yet time seemed to be dwindling away in front of her. She now knew and understood, though, that fighting Warrik was her destiny. Why else would she have been magically zapped into a painting? Because of this, she knew she had to succeed, and not worry about what lay in the future. But it was hard.

"Do not worry, little Rin, you will be protected no matter what happens. Inuyasha and Miroku wont let anything bad happen to you, and neither will I." He gave out a comforting purr from the back of his throat and a friendly smile. She returned it with a hug for his kind, and comforting words.

"Thanks, Freddy."

He let out a growl filled with content, which hummed through her body. "You should get some rest, little one. You may have to make up for the lost time tomorrow. Lord Sesshoumaru doesn't seem like a very patient demon."

She nodded and headed back towards the camp, watching as her dragon friend leapt into the sky, soaring higher and higher above the trees for a midnight stroll. She loved watching him fly with his massive wings sprawled, soaring on the crisp night air. Watching him until he was out of view, she began her stroll back, walking along the streams edge, deep in thought, but suddenly bumped into something warm and hard. She looked at what it could be and was faced, nosed pressed, against someone's armor. Raising her head, narrowed golden eyes that shimmered from the reflection of the crescent moon in the stream, glared down upon her.

"What are you doing?" He asked, making her jump, but returned the question with a glare as she rested her hands on her hips defensively.

"Do you make it a habit of trying to scare me?"

Sesshoumaru didn't answer, instead he ignored her and stared with interest at the stream. For the first time since she had met him, he wasn't so tense, and her first reaction wasn't to get mad and yell at him. Maybe it was the moonlight, but something about him seemed different. He still had his arrogant aura engulfing everything around him, and his expression still held a bored and uncaring edge, but there was something underneath that she hadn't noticed before.

Frowning, she tried to figure out what it was that she hadn't noticed before, but hadn't realized she was staring at him like an idiot.

"Is there a reason why you're staring at me like a dumbfounded, idiotic child?" he asked.

She blushed. "I had a nightmare, " she stated, and he cocked his head to the side. "Oh, that was for your earlier question," she stuttered, and for some reason unknown to her, he cheeks began to glow an even brighter red, but still, she couldn't take her eyes away from him. His hair glimmered in the soft moonlight; silver locks swishing in the light breeze. Though she thought she could stare at him for hours, because everything about him right then just seemed to fascinate her, her body betrayed her when she let out a loud yawn, making her eyes water. She blinked back the tears, smacking her lips, swallowing back the remnants of the yawn.

He stood beside her, straight and stiff, watching her. The look he gave her wasn't cold or soft, but he did seem somewhat interested, but it quickly vanished, replaced by an emotionless stare.

"Go to sleep," he ordered unenthusiastically. "I don't want to fall even more behind because of your tiredness."

She yawned again, realizing just then how tired she was. Too tired to say something smart assy, she nodded and made her way again back to the campsite. Already hearing Miroku's thunderous snoring, she smiled, and looked behind her.

"Goodnight, Sesshoumaru."

He didn't move nor acknowledge her wish, but she knew he heard her, which was all that mattered. Maybe she had judged him wrong and too soon. Maybe there was something inside him that he didn't want her to discover. Maybe he really did hate her, but whatever the case, the small, slight difference that she saw in him that night made her realize there is something more to the powerful, arrogant, and snobbish demon lord of the West, than what she had first noticed. She had a sudden urge to know him more, to figure out what was truly underneath his mysterious masquerade.

_Alright, I'm going to give him another chance. There's more to that demon, and I want to know what it is. How bad could he really be? Maybe he's acting rude because Inuyasha is traveling with us. _She nodded her head in agreement. _I'm going to try and get him alone tomorrow. _She nodded again, reassuring herself while snuggling up under the blanket. _Yep, that's exactly what I'll do!

* * *

_

Over the past few days, trying to find a time to talk to Sesshoumaru became impossible. First, Miroku swamped her with new spells, which she learned quickly, surprising her teacher of her potential. Second, Sesshoumaru was being just as impossibly bossy, controling, and boring as ever, possibly even more. She was finding it very hard to remember to give him a second chance. He was so impossible. Finally, the third reason was every time Sesshoumaru wasn't being his insufferable self, he and Inuyasha would bicker over stupid things, just like ordinary siblings. It was starting to get on her nerves.

"You don't have to be a jerk about everything!"yelled Inuyasha.

"I'm not a jerk, you're just incompetent." Rin sighed, ignoring her studies.

"Just because I'm not a full demon doesn't make me incompetent!"

"I'll always be better than you,"Sesshoumaru stated with a bored sigh.

Inuyasha balled his fists, ready to fight. "Yeah, right!" he yelled sarcastically. Sesshoumaru ignored him and kept his fast pace, nose high in the air.

"Rin, why aren't you practicing? We don't have that much time," Miroku reminded her about the yelling.

She was starting to get a headache.

Inuyasha stopped walking and pointed angrily at his brother. "Stop yer walkin' and fight me, you coward!" Sesshoumaru just kept walking,"I'm not going to stoop to your level."

For some reason or another, everyone's nerves were running on empty. Miroku would get impatient with Rin if she stopped practicing; Rin was tired of all the bickering: and to make it worse, the two brothers seemed to be extra aggitated, making the journey even more unbearable. The lack of sleep caused by her reoccuring nightmare added to the extra weight of exhaustion she felt already on her body. She had meant to ask Miroku about her dream, but considering his mood as of late, she decided anytime wouldn't be the right time.

Suddenly, Sesshoumaru stopped in the middle of the pathway, which Inuyasha took as an invitation to fight, charging towards the taller demon, who in return whacked Inuyasha across the chest, sending him flying.

"Be still," the demon ordered.

Miroku gasped,"I sense something dark coming!" Rin could feel the presence as well, which made her heart beat faster, anxious for what was to come.

Inuyasha drew his sword,"Let them come!"

Miroku touched Rin's arm protectively,"It's not a demon,it's something else."

"Dragons," Sesshoumaru said, eyes narrowed towards the sky.

"Whatever,"Inuyasha growled,"Dragons, demons; whatever, let 'em come!"

Miroku turned towards Sesshoumaru,"They're coming up fast from the south."

Inuyasha sniffed the air,"I smell something burnt, like really bad eggs."

Sesshoumaru said nothing, did nothing. He just stood there in front of the staring up at the sky, while Inuyasha grew more anxious, breathing and growling heavily in his chest. They all stared up in the direction of the demon lord, and saw a dark speck in the distant sky zoom down towards them. The closer the speck came, they realized it was only Frednicio flying down towards them way too fast, but soon more tiny specks followed him.

"Run!" roared Frenicio, loudly from above, but Rin couldn't, she was frozen in fear and curiousity. "Run!"

Miroku watched in horror as the specks following Frednicio turned into what looked like slithering snakes in the sky, pursuing the tailless dragon with lightening fast speed. Inuyasha tensed up on his sword, already smelling the blood he was going to shed.

"Run you, idiot!" he yelled towards Miroku."Get out of here! I'll get these beasts!"

Miroku pushed Rin forward as she began to run. He was following closely behind as she heard his determined breaths of air quicken. She looked behind her to see Frednicio so close to the tops of the trees now, breaking off branches as his feet brushed against them, still being quickly pursued by the slithering monsters. The dragons split up as one stayed behind Frednicio, gaining speed.

"Run, Rin!" Miroku yelled behind her,"Just run!" So she did. She ran as fast as she could.

Sesshoumaru leapt high into the sky, so high he was out of view. Inuyasha growled at his brother, and soon Rin heard behind her the clash and clank of Inuyasha's sword echoing through the forest floor. She could feel Frednicio's wings behind her and Miroku as she ran. She wanted to look behind her, but a low rumbling hiss stopped her curiosity as the crackle of a burning fire and the smell of burning flesh swept across their nostrils. Frednicio let out a load roar, tumbling head first into the ground. The impact of the fall behind them sent wind and dirt flying onto their skin, sending tiny stabs of pain around them. She couldn't stand it. She had to look.

Frednicio was on fire, gnashing and clawing at the large, flying serpent above him. There was blood and roars poor from his body. The serpent dragon was gnashing away at the friendly giant. A look of complete horror crossed her face, and she looked back behind her, stumbling along the forest floor.

"Miroku,"she yelled desperately,"help Frednicio!"

He shook his head,"No, I need to protect you!"

She was almost in tears, in tears from running so hard, in tears from the smoke around her, and in tears for her scaley friend. "No!" she cried,"I'll keep running, but you help Freddy! He needs you!"

Reluctantly he slowed down and made a u-turn towards the fighting dragons. She ran as hard as she could, stumbling over logs, unexpected digs, and leaves scattered across the ground. She didn't have time to think. She wanted to know what happened to Sesshoumaru. She wanted to know what happened to Inuyasha. She wanted to know what happend to Frednicio. She wanted to know what happened to the dragons. But her mind couldn't think such horrible thoughts. All she could think about was pushing her self harder and harder, running faster and faster. She could faintly hear Inuyasha's battle yells, Frednicio's roars of pain and fury, and Miroku's enchantments. She thought she was almost safe, but then a hissing behind her made the hair on the back of her neck to rise. One of the dragons was slithering effortlessly through the trees towards her.

She let out a blood curdling scream, her heart pounding in her head, and ran faster than she ever imagined, but the dragon was gaining on her, and she felt a sudden since of deja vu cloud her mind. The dragon was now only several feet behind her. She could feel it's hot breath upon her back; sulfur and burnt vegetation wafted across her nose, making her gag. _This is it! I'm gonna be burned like a human hot dog!_

"Help me!" she screamed out, now wishing she hadn't made Miroku help Frednicio. The dragon was closer, opening it's mouth. "Help me!" she screamed again. He stuck out it's slithery tongue, touching, tasting Rin on the back of her neck, forcing out something that resembled a hissing, maniacal laugh.

"Get down!" yelled a power and commanding voice behind her. Without thinking she obeyed, diving down to the ground quickly. A whip of green light barely missed her head as it sliced through the dragon's scales. The dragon seemed to have choked on something as it's body and head crumpled to the ground on top of her. She screamed again as the dragon's headless, convulsing body scratched at her skin, but it didn't last long, because somehow she was suddenly in someone's arm, leaping into the air, holding on tightly to an armored waist. She looked up to see piercing, fearless golden eyes.

"Se-Sesshoumaru?" she asked in shocked weakness before the world around her turned fuzzy and black.

* * *

**A/N: Woo, now wasn't that an exciting chapter or what! I thought this definately was a fun chapter to write. I hope you all liked it! I'm so sorry that it took so long to type up chapter 6. I actually wasn't planning on procrastinating that long, but I got really wrapped up in my artwork, so I didn't work on my story. Sorry! I hope you all can forgive me by sending wonderful reviews and comments! I'll get started typing chapter 7, which I still haven't titled yet, as soon as possible!The next chapterwill begood! Thanks for reading so far! Please comment and review! I loveth to hear what you all have to say! **


	7. A New Cause For Justice

**A/N: All Inuyasha characters belong to Rumiko Takahashi!**

**The Long Awaited Adventure**

By Ivaliny

Chapter 7

"A New Cause For Justice"

* * *

He sat cross-legged by the fire, poking at the embers as the sun was setting. He looked across the fire at Rin who was snuggled up against his dragon, AhUn. After she had passed out, his faithful servant, Jaken came to him in a frantic mess, riding AhUn, and not even noticing the already decaying body of a 'breather. Sesshoumaru held Rin in one arm as the toad jumped off, swinging around his two-headed staff

"Jaken," Sesshoumaru acknowledged.

The toad started to whine,"Milord, I have some terrible news!" He ducked his head, ready for his master's rage, but none came out, he only walked on with the human girl slumped in his right arm awkwardly. AhUn followed his master as Jaken tried to figure out how to break his news.

"Y-y-your," Jaken stuttered,"estate is gone! 'Breathers came looking for you and your stupid brother, and when we told them you were away, they burned the estate!" He whimpered, shaking where he stood. "Please don't kill me, Lord Sesshoumaru!"

Sesshoumaru stopped walking as AhUn looked at the tall demon curiously. "Jaken," he questioned,"is it all destroyed?"

Jaken whimpered some more, "Y-yes, milord! All of it was destroyed, and AhUn saved me!"

His home was destroyed by those nasty 'breathers. The estate had been passed down generation after generation. His father took pride in its up keeping, and Sesshoumaru honored his wishes. The burning of his home sent a wave of fury and despair through his heart. It was all he had of his father, and just like his father, it was all gone, damaged by evil flickering flames. What now did he have left? What would his father think of him now? His stomach churned, everything his father worked so hard for is gone. He had nothing left. A dark cloud of rage hung over his head. He wanted to kill something. His anger was overtaking his body and a growl deep with in from the bottom of his chest vibrated it's way upward. His eyes slowly turned a blood red as the demon in him took over. He dug his claws deep into the unconscious girl in his arm who began to whimper as droplets of her blood came trickling down his hand. Her whimper startled him. He had forgotten he was carrying her. Suddenly his eyes returned to their golden state, controlling the emotions bottled up inside of him, and began to walk on, away from the monsters that destroyed his life.

Jaken uncovered his head and saw that his master and AhUn where leaving him behind, and ran off after them. "Wait for me, milord, your humble servant Jaken, wait for me!"

Sesshoumaru poked at the fire unconsciously, brooding over his loss. 'Breathers were controlled by Warrik and the Augapfel Kingdom, so they must have had orders to look for him and his brother, but why. He had nothing that Warrik would want, except his land, but if that was the case, Warrik's minions would be scouring the lands, destroying everything in their path right then. If that was the case, they wouldn't just destroy his castle and everything he had either. Sesshoumaru glared at the fire, _No, whatever the reason, this journey is personal. Warrik will not live once I'm done with him. _He made a slight growl in his chest.

Something deep down in the pit of his being ached. It wasn't for the loss of his estate, but for something else. Something entirely new. Something much deeper which made a dull ache, which he had discovered for the first time, the night he had spotted Rin at the stream's edge under the moonlight.

_Rin_, he thought. The flicker of the fire before him made his golden eyes a fiery amber that narrowed at the thought of the name. She was strange to him. The way she acted, the way se talked, seemed different and foreign to him, yet she was also the only human whom he found truly humble and true warm heart. He hated it. He found it annoying at how much she would smile and laugh, even when there was no need to be happy.

Looking at her sleeping, unconscious, tiny form surrounded by his dragon, he laughed mockingly at himself. _What next? A lone demon and a lone human stuck on a journey together._ He stared at her,_ No, a worthless human, and a demon with nothing his name, now stand alone, stuck on a journey together. How ironic._ Ironic indeed, the thins he dreaded the most, losing his father's honor, and being stuck with a human, now were all true and present.

* * *

She fluttered her eyes open, staring at a burning fire in front of her, which made her jump and stand up in a fright. Remembering the fire breathing dragons, she feared she was enveloped in their fire. Sesshoumaru looked at the girl in surprise. Her face was a sickly pale and her scent had fear all over it. She darted her eyes around in horror and fell backward with a scream as AhUn's two heads moved up from their resting positions to look at their new favorite pet. Sesshoumaru caught her before she fell into the fire. She tried to steady herself in his grasp, reaching for his other arm frantically, then realizing there was nothing there. Her eyes widened in horror as she grabbed at his arm when he lost his holding and they both toppled over on top of AhUn. The dragon made a grunt of pretest but did little about it.

She scrambled out from underneath the dog demon, holding herself protectively with a look of worry and concern towards his missing arm. "I'm sorry, Sesshoumaru! I didn't mean to pull you over."

The demon stood up effortlessly, dusting off the dirt from his silk outfit with his right hand. Rin couldn't help but stare at the left side of his body. She had never noticed he was missing an arm. Looking him up and down, she wondered what other things she had missed about the demon prince. He walked over to where he sat before and set himself down on to the forest floor gracefully, ignoring her watchful eyes. He resumed his glare at the fire, wishing she would stop staring at him.

"Where are Miroku and Inuyasha?" she asked, looking around noting their absence, and then only realizing how late in the evening it actually was. "How long was I out?"

"Half the day," he answered, and for some strange reason he felt regretfull for the next thing he was going to tell her,"and I don't know where Inuyasha or Miroku are. I sent AhUn out to look for them, but they were not found." He paused, "They must have been eaten." Mentally he kicked himself in the head for that slip up. He watched the hurt and horror in her eyes as she dumbfoundedly plopped down onto the earthen floor. They were gone. Her friends were gone, and he seemed to not care. Never in her live until then has she felt truly alone. The crackling of the fire echoed hard in her head as the pit of her stomach sank. She felt like she was going to throw up. Now that Miroku was gone, she couldn't learn any new spells, and now that Inuyasha was gone as well, she hand no one to start her combat training with.

He watched her fight with her burning emotions. The look on her eyes showed pain and loneliness. They were both alone on this journey now. Her eyes welled up with tears. He frowned at her, never caring much for tears, especially from a woman. She looked at his frown, her cheeks rosing with embarrassment, and swallowed back the ache and the tears caused in the back of her throat. She was alone, alone wit the uncaring demon lord. She desperately wanted to cry, and the look she gave Sesshoumaru, a disheartening glare, made him look away, not in embarrassment but in pity; pity for the fact she was hurt and about to cry.

Rin stood up and walked away from the campsite. He watched her walk away; first, glad she wasn't going to cry in front of him, but then he remembered he was hunted man, and he could feel other demon presences surrounding them.

"Wait," he choked out surprisingly,"don't, it's not safe."

"Why?" she asked, turning around to face him, paling.

"It's dangerous-"

"Are there more dragons out there?" she interrupted in a panic.

"No, those are dead, but there are demons out that and they would love to have a fresh young human for dinner."

"And you don't?" she snapped. "What makes you any different from them? How do I know you wont eat me, too?"

He didn't answer.

"Now that Inuyasha is gone, you have no deal with him. You can just go back home and do your piling paperwork and sniff your pretty flowers. You have no reason to stay here."

He looked away from her as silence fell between them," I have no home."

"What? I was there not several days ago. What are you talking about?"

He was silent for a long moment," It was burned down by the 'breathers before the attack."

Her heart sank at his words," I guess we both lost something today," she whispered silently to herself.

"I'm going to find Warrik," he stated. Rin knew perfectly well what he meant. He was going to avenge his household. She looked over at him with a sudden warmth radiating from every pore. At first the change in her scent startles him, but soon her scent began to tingle inside of him. He looked away, it was overwhelming him.

_Maybe he really isn't that bad,_ she though, _at least he has some kind of honor._

"And I will fight as well. Warrik needs to be brought down," she said with sudden enthusiasm, but Sesshoumaru couldn't help but snort, which made her frown.

"What?"

He said nothing.

"You know, I was going to say something nice about you, but you can forget it!"

"Nice?" the word seemed foreign to him," I could kill you ten times worse than what those 'breathers could have even dreamt of."

She huffed,"Oh, so now you're threatening me."

He just stared at her, "You should go to sleep. We're way behind, we should already be traveling the desert." Watching him poke at the fire, she realized she wasn't going to say anymore, and decided sleep was the best thing. She got ready for bed and slipped under the blanket. She was surprised when Sesshoumaru's dragon curled up around her, but she welcomed the warmth the dragon gave her, making her smile. She felt oddly protected that night.

"AhUn doesn't usually like humans," Sesshoumaru stated across the fire.

She looked up at AhUn's two heads and grinned when the dragon gave her a loving nudge. Sesshoumaru was surprised to find out he liked the way his dragon curled around the girl. He watched her with mild interest as her breathing became softer as she drifted off into sleep.

* * *

**A/N: Awww, wasn't this chapter sad? I thought it was, that's why it was way shorter than the other ones. AWW, poor Sesshoumaru and Rin!So, what will happen to the two now?I promise Chapter 8 will be much longer with action filled...stuff! **


	8. Seperate Ways

**A/N: All Inuyasha characters belong to Rumiko Takahashi!**

**The Long Awaited Adventure**

By Ivaliny

Chapter 8

"Separate Ways"

* * *

It hadn't fully sunk in until the next morning when they were leaving camp, that Inuyasha, Miroku, and Frednicio were gone. They were truly gone. The morning was quiet and uneventful, except for Jaken's annoying banter, which Rin found utterly depressing. No more of Miroku's perverted jokes. No more of Inuyash's shows of manliness. No more of Frednicio's thunderous chuckles. No more.

They traveled on deeper into the forest, Sesshoumaru leading as always with the same fast pace. He stared up ahead, jaw clenched, eyes narrowed, lost in his own thoughts. Sometimes he forgot he wasn't alone and began to run, but Rin didn't mind, she was silently sitting on top of AhUn. Both lost in thought, would be jolted back to reality by Jaken's pleas to slow down. While sitting and thinking, she realized she hadn't dreamt at all the night before. No more reoccurring nightmare. She was saddened to think that her dream did come true. If she had only told Miroku, maybe none of this would have happened, and she would still be practicing her spells. She could have at least warned Inuyasha or Sesshoumaru of the upcoming attack, but how could she have known it would have come true anyways?

A sudden strong breeze picked up, rustling the leaves on the giant, powerful trees above, as she watched Sesshoumaru almost in awe as his silver strands of hair gracefully danced behind him, gleaning, shining, in the patches of sun as he walked onward. She found the way he looked fascinating at times. Never had she seen such a strong, tall man before. He seemed to tower over her at times. His stride was graceful and the only time she ever saw him stumble or fall over, was when she lost her hold on his armor and fell down, dragging him with her. He seemed almost perfect. No matter what win blew, his hair was always silky smooth. His eyes were nearly almost always narrowed in a glare, the gleamed a cold gold that made you feel empty inside, which also seemed to peer down upon everything, usually sending cold chills through her body. She found the markings on his face and the crescent moon on his forehead interesting, and wondered if all demons had such markings as those.

Watching him walk, effortlessly gliding on the forest's floor, she noticed that although he was big, his footsteps made no sound. The only thing that made a sound was the large pelt draped across his shoulder, which billowed in the wind like a snake, and a sleeve that rustled in the wind where his missing arm would have been. The thought of snakes and missing arms made her look away in sadness. _Did he lose that arm from on of the 'breather attacks?_ she wondered.

"Sesshoumaru?" she asked, breaking the silence.

"That's Lord Sesshoumaru, you stupid human!" Jaken's shrilled voice yelled.

"Sesshoumaru, I-"

Jaken waved his staff,"Why you-"

"Jaken."

The toad stopped swinging the stand around and ducked his head, peering at his master with scared yellow eyes. "Y-yes, milord?"

"That is enough," the demon lord commanded.

"Sesshoumaru," Rin questioned again. He made no sign that he was listening, but she went on anyways. "I dreamt the attack of the dragons," she paused, waiting for him to say something, but he didn't. "I dreamt the attack first a few nights ago, and then it kept reoccurring. I should have told someone about it, but I didn't." She drew in a deep breath and let out a heavy sigh. "I just wanted you to know I wont let that happen again, and I'm sorry it was all my fault."

For some reason he wanted to tell her it wasn't her fault and that there was nothing that she could have done, but the demon inside of him decided against it. He hated to think like that. He didn't want to feel the need to reassure her. He was a demon, and a very powerful one at that, he was supposed to have thoughts constantly going through his head about killing and gaining more power to kill, not travel with the enemy and prey that he's hunted for hundreds of years. He really wanted to kill something right then, maybe to prove to himself he wasn't growing mentally weak, and that he was the same Sesshoumaru.

Unfortunately, traveling with Rin was making him think more his father and his untimely demise, which only kept reminding him of his lost estate. He wanted to kill even more. And even being reminded of what he lost, somewhere in the deepest depth of his soul, he secretly mourned his brother's death. He hated Inuyasha for the symbol he stood for. Inuyasha was a sign of his great father's imperfection. He hated to think of his father as anything less than perfection, but everytime he saw or caught Inuyasha's scent on the breeze, his demon blood boiled with anger. Even though he hated Inuyasha for all of that, he couldn't bring himself to hate him enough to see him dead. Even though Inuyasha was a sign of imperfection, he still reminded Sesshoumaru so much of their dead father. The fact that Inuyasha was now dead, and now his father's fate seemed all to real. He really had lost everything. The thought made a growl within him escape as he clenched his fist in anger. The only thing left of his father's legacy was him, and he would be damned if Warrik would take that away. The thirst to kill was so strong now. He need to kill. He _had_ to kill. He wanted to kill anything and everything.

"Lord Sesshoumaru, are you alright?" Jaken asked, inquiring about his lord's sudden change in demonic aura, fearing the worst. Rin watched Sesshoumaru's back stiffen and arch like a dog ready to attack.

"Stay," he ordered with a menacing growl. She watched him leap off the trail and into the forest with curiosity and fear. She couldn't help but feel responsible for his anger, and all that was left of him was a cloud of dust. Jaken stared after his lord then quickly turned around, glaring at Rin.

"You stupid human! It's all your fault. Keep your moth closed!"

Rin looked down in shame,"I'm sorry! I just felt that he should have known about it."

"I've seen that look in his eyes, and I hate it! That look of blood thirst chills me to the bones, and it's all your fault! Who knows, maybe right now he's slaughtering a whole village."

"A village?"

Jaken smiled evily,"Milord has destroyed many a village. I am so lucky to serve a demon as strong as him."

Rin looked off towards the direction he had disappeared. _Was he really going to kill because of what I said?_

The toad sighed,"Who knows when he'll be back. We might as well get comfy."

When Sesshoumaru returned, covered in blood, bits of flesh, and reeking of death, he was actually glad to see Rin was napping peacefully next to AhUn. The dragon raised his heads in a greeting towards his master. Sesshoumaru motioned for AhUn to stay still as to not wake up Rin or Jaken, although he really didn't care whether or not Jaken awoke. Looking down at his bloodied arm, and noticing the stench of decaying flesh, it made his nose curle, and he decided to wash up.

After removing his armor and clothing, he dipped himself into the water, enjoying the cool, refreshing way it slid across his skin. He reflected upon the dozens of demons he had slain with his bare hand as he moved it around in the water, washing away the blood. As he began to pick out the bits and pieces of flesh from his hair, he smiled. His blood thirst to kill had successfully been quenched, and the ecstasy it left behind put him in a good mood. He didn't care about Warrik, he didn't care about his father, he didn't care about Inuyasha, and he didn't care about Rin. All that mattered then was that he had killed countless of demons. He snorted, taking a deep breath, and letting it out in a deep satisfying sigh. _I still have it.

* * *

_

Off in the practice grounds, Torent and a spider demon were busy dueling. He swung his sword around, catching the spider off guard, but with its many legs, quickly jumped to avoid the sharp blade before it could take out a leapt. Torent twisted his body around as the spider spewed out a poisoning, sticky ooze from it's mouth, which knocked Torent's sword out of his hand, which dripped onto his skin. The poison didn't penetrate his dragon tough skin, which he could thank his father's bloodline for that. Torent twitched out a pointy, serpenty smile at his foe. The spider reared up on his back legs exposing a weak spot, tossing his forelegs up and down, threatening the half-dragon warrior. Without hesitation, Torent formed a triangle with his fingers, which made his eyes turn a fiery red, and let out a powerful blast, hitting the spider's weak spot. The spider let out a monstrous roar as his body glowed like electricity from the energy of Torent's black, then exploded, leaving a pile of ash.

He let out a victorious chuckle, smiling, showing his pointy fangs that gleamed in the early morning sunlight, and rubbed his hands together. "Well, that was fun. Who's next?" Looking around, dozens of armored soldiers and demons looked at each other in bewilderment, making Torent decide it was the perfect time to show off. He took in a deep breath and blew out a long stream of fire from his mouth and nose. The faces he saw were priceless.

"C'mon," he said teasingly," I wont bite that hard!" He took in another deep breath, ready to spew the fire when a bird's cry was heard above. Torent stopped, gulped, and looked up to see a hawk swooping down from the sky, giving another cry as it landed on Torent's armored shoulder.

"Touga?" Torent asked. The hawk turned to him and gave a shrill cry, then flew off.

"Yes, sir?" a tiny voice asked.

Torent looked at the men around him suspiciously, and began to walk off. "When I come back, someone had better duel me!" he hissed. The soldiers and demons talked among themself as Torent walked to a secure location.

Once he found a place where he was sure no prying ears could hear, he asked a tiny speck on his arm," So what have you brought for me?"

Touga replied,"I was flying through the air, snacking on that hawk, when I saw your 'breathers being destroyed by the Demon Lord of the West, Sesshoumaru, a half demon, and a human."

Torent gave out a curse and began to pace,"So the 'breathers failed, and Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru still haven't been captured." He let out another curse. "Now I'm going to have to be the bearer of bad news, again!"

The tiny tick on his arm sighed,"But that's not all."

Torent rolled his eyes,"What more horrible news do you have for me Touga, because nothing you have ever brought me was good."

"I overheard Sesshoumaru and his servant after he had saved a human girl from the last 'breather, that not only did the 'breather's destroy his whole estate, but that it also seems that they may have killed his brother, Inuyasha."

Torent groaned at the last part,"What? Inuyasha has the sword Master Warrik wants." He sat down on a fallen log, rubbing his temples, already fearing the worst from Warrik. The 'breathers had never failed before, and now they have to deal with Sesshoumaru.

"But I may have good news," Touga said as Torent looked at him with interest. "You wont have to go find Sesshoumaru, because he's coming this way with that human girl."

The half-dragon groaned even louder, throwing his head back in defeat. "How is _that_ good news!"

* * *

Rin shot up out of her sleep with a start, breathing heavily, drowning in sweat to see that Sesshoumaru was staring at her. She blinked a few times, looking away embaressed.

"You were moaning in your sleep," he said without caring.

She coughed to clear her throat,"I had another nightmare." He said nothing. "A demon was tearing away at my skin while someone laughed in the background." She looked away, shaking and scared. Now that she knew she could see into the future, this dream scared her. What made it worse, is that she had no way of knowing when it would happen, and it seemed like Sesshoumaru didn't care. She sighed and noticed the time of day. It was mid to late afternoon.

"Why didn't you wake me? We've just wasted a tong of traveling time!"

He shrugged,"I didn't see that I should have awakened you. You need your rest."

Rin eyed him suspiciously, "What are you talking about? I thought we were trying to get there as fast as we could to save Princess Kagome, not take a damn vacation!"

His eyebrow twtiched. He had forgotten about the Princess, being so wrapped up in his own affairs, and because Inuyasha wasn't there to remind them about her all day.

"The princess isn't my problem," he answered honestly.

Rin was starting to get frustrated by the demon prince,"I know you didn't like your brother much, and I've gathered you don't care about Efeu, but we really need to rescue the princess so that Efee can be saved." She stopped from continuing after remembering who she was talking to. _He'd destroy a whole village for the sport of it. _

Letting out a long, frustrated sigh, she looked in his golden eyes, which made him shift uncomfortably, "I care what happens, actually they are all counting on me," she paused,"on us, to destroy Warrik." Watching his bored, uninterested expression made her heart sink, and she gave up. "Forget it."

"How do you know Warrik hasn't destroyed Efue yet? He's already destroyed Mondlicht."

Rin shrugged,"I guess I just have to believe that it's alright. I can't go into this battle without some kind of hope."

They both fell silent, looking up at the sky. To the northeast, a large thundercloud began to roll towards them. They watched the sky become darker and darker. She was surprised when her demon companion broke their silence.

"The reason why I didn't want to wake you, is because you'll need as much rest as you can get. Once we leave the safety of the forest we will be in a desert, easy targets for anything, especially Warrik. We need to get through it as quickly as possible without little to no stopping to reach Augapfel. That's why you need plenty of rest."

For a second, she felt the slightest hint of concern in his voice, but she quickly ignored it. _He's being ridiculous!_

"But what about Warrik?"

"He knows we're coming, or at least he will soon know. Either he will come after us, or he'll wait for us. He's expecting us to reach the base of the Augapfel Mountains within a week or a little more. It wouldn't hurt to rest a few days, and catch him off guard."

Lightening from the northeast split from the clouds to the ground in the distance, and a couple of minutes later, a thunderous boom rumbled their way. The two watched the thunder cloud while Rin contemplated the demon's words. She stood, stretched, and yawned.

"Well we better find some shelter soon, otherwise neither of use will get much rest."

Sesshoumaru agreed,_ humans are sickly, fragile creatures, she needs shelter._ "There was a village a couple of miles to the west, we should go there."

Soon they were packed and ready to get back on the road. Having more sleep than he was used to having, Jaken was lively and more talkative than normal. He made their trip bearable, although Sesshoumaru would never have admitted it, he welcomed his servant's mindless, gossipy banter. He found it odd that Rin wasn't as talkative as she had been before, but he had to remember her friends were gone.

Drawing nearer to the, the air surrounding it became strange and thick. Sesshoumaru noticed the stench of death and demon all around. He looked over at Rin, and saw that she didn't seem to notice the change, and stopped walking. She looked up at him curiously. Jaken, still walking behind them toddled forward until a polished boot kicked him in the face.

He rubbed the lump growing on his forehead,"Wha-what was that for, milord?"

"Go check out that village before us, and report back immedietly."

Still rubbing his head, he looked at Sesshoumaru suspiciously, then slumped his shoulders and walked forward, mumbling to himself. It was Rin's turn to be suspicious, raising an eyebrow towards the demon who watched the toad walk out of sight.

"What was that for?" she questioned,"Why can't we check it out ourselves?"

He stared her bored,"For one, I don't deal with humans. They annoy and disgust me to no end." Rin frowned." And for two, Jaken's shrill voice was getting on my nerves, so I had to send him away to save my sanity."

Rin felt defensive after what he said. His words cut through her like knives. _Why was he always so critical of humans? What did we do to fall under his graces? _she wondered. _What a jerk!_ she thought as she glared at his direction, which took him off guard. He wasn't expecting to see her do that. He thought she was past the whole glaring thing. He raised an eyebrow ever so slightly to show his confusion and interest in her glare.

"We disgust you to no end?" she asked, still fuming about his remark.

"I'm not following," he replied.

She groan at how dense he seemed," You said you don't deal with humans because they're disgusting." He stared at her as if it were either no big deal or that he was still not following. "Do you even remember saying that?"

"Of course, I mean everything that I say."

Her glare grew icy,"Then what am I?"

He paused and stared at her with narrowed eyes. "A mere human." _What is she getting at? What is her problem?_

"Oh," she said putting her hands out sarcastically," so I guess you think I"m an annoying, disgusting human as well?" She actually hated the way she was acting, it was very childish of her, but the felt highly defensive at the moment. Usually, she wouldn't let what he cared about matter to her, but it did this time.

Sesshoumaru's narrowed eyes turned into a scowl, glaring at the human girl. She was starting to get on his nerves. _Why were women always so sensitive and unpredictable?_ he wondered.

"Right now you are indeed. You're annoying, loud, _and_ disgusting, especially when your nose wrinkles with your glare, which I must say is pathetic. You're the same as every other human."

Rin let her jaw drop in surprise and protest. She hadn't expected him to say such things to her face at least. Clinching her teeth in anger, wanting to strangle the demon in front of her, she let out an exasperated scream of frustration.

"How can you-no why are you," she lout another one, seeing that her frustration was doing nothing to intimidate or change his bored, snobbish expression. Even though she was so mad at him, she couldn't understand exactly why. He was just speaking his mind, but it still infuriated her, because she realized she was wrong about him. There was nothing to him. He was just a rich, spoiled, pompous jerk.

He was still confused by her sudden mood change, and the scent on her changed to that of something similar to the scent his father had when he was disappointed. _Why would she be feeling this way? What would have made her feel disappointment?_ The scent she was sending off made him want to gag. He's smelt it so many times before when his father was alive. He wanted to make it go away.

Rin laughed at herself sarcastically, talking to herself and looking at the ground as if she had just learned she were dying. "Here I am thinking you were different from the egotistical jerk I had spyed on in the woods, but I was wrong. I thought that night by the stream I saw something different in you, but I can see I was wrong." She started to back away. I can't trust you. I can't travel with you. I had forgotten how much you infuriate me."

"Where are you going?" he asked cooly as he watched her walk away from him.

"I can't do this," she motioned all around her, " I can't do this with you. I can't go fight Warrik with someone who I can't trust or hates me."

Sesshoumaru snorted,"You're foolish." He was starting to get very mad and annoyed with her. She was being irrational and stupid, and he now wanted her to go. He'd find Warrik and kill him himself. He didn't need help from a human woman whom barely even knew how be a wizard or even fight.

"Then you should leave," he slightly growled. After he said those words; however, he wished he could take them back, which once again made him feel weak from the sudden emotion. He wished those worthless emotions would just go away, but no, they couldn't. They were etched into his blood, a curse from his beloved father. _She can't find Warrik on her own. She can't even fight to defend herself, _he thought with slight concern. He didn't know why he even felt that tinge of concern for her, maybe it was because right now she reminded him of his father. _Emotions are weak_, the thought to himself. _Let her go off by herself. Let her get lost. Let her become a human entree. Let her go. _

Rin raised her chin,"Fine. I can see you don't care, so I will leave. Good luck, Sesshoumaru," she said coldly, turned around, and walked off as a rumble of thunder pounded overhead. _What is wrong with me?_ she thought. _I can't do this on my own!_ She sighed as she walked farther away from the uncaring demon and towards the rolling thunderstorm. The only thing that kept her from turning around was her cursed pride.

AhUn watched her leave with sad eyes, but instead of following after her, he stayed loyal to his master's side, huffing out air through both head's nostrils as Sesshoumaru watched with annoyance leaving his sight. He was alone again, but it didn't matter. She was a stupid human, and he wanted to be glad that she was walking away from him. "Stupid," he muttered to himself.

Just then Jaken returned, swinging his large staff around, as he always did, and shrieking as usual. "Lord Sesshoumaru!" he yelled,"Lord Sesshoumaru, your servant, Jaken, has returned!"

Sesshoumaru raised his chin higher, waiting for Jaken to relay what he had seen. The toad looked around, noticing that the girl was gone.

"What happened to that wretched girl?" he muttered to himself," hopefully something horrible."

"She went into the forest," Sesshoumaru replied.

Jaken laughed,"Foolish, human! Doesn't she know that's suicide?"

"Jaken," Sesshoumaru firmly stated, feeling a horrible headache creep across his head.

The toad demon flinched,"Y-yes, milord?"

"What did you find?"

"The village was empty, milord. No humans at all. There was no human or demon scent anywhere, either. It looked as if the humans just got up and left without finishing their chores. There wasn't even a sign of any struggle, milord."

_How odd_, he thought_, I can smell a strong demon aura, and death wafting from the village, but Jaken says there is none. Why did his senses not pick up these?_ Lightening struck and a thunderous boom echoed afterwards as rain droplets began to fall upon his white silk and armor.

"Very well," Sesshoumaru said as he began to make his way towards the village as the sky grew darker, as the rain began to soak his hair.

* * *

She was getting wetter and wetter, rain drops dripping from her hair to her face and down her nose as she wandered, stumbling across the wet forest floor, looking for some kind of shelter. Every time lightening struck and the thunder boomed, shaking the ground, her heart would jump.

Now she was regretting letting her emotions take the better of her. Normally, she would have ignored him and thought nothing of it, but may the grief for her friends were overwhelming her senses. It had only been a day, but to her it seemed like forever, so maybe because of this, she threw out all logical thinking. Wanting to cry, she realized that even if she did want to go back to Sesshoumaru, which she desperately wanted to now, she wouldn't know the way back. Not only did she not know where was was, but the thought of actually trying to find Warrik by herself now sickened her. She felt so helpless.

Looking around for a cave, or an overhanging rock, or condensed bushes or trees, she felt like someone was watching her. She looked around for anyone, but no one was there. Her skin grew goosebumps as a cold, dreadful chill tingled down her neck. The rain was pouring down harder now, splashing much on to the clothes she had gotten from Sango. The mud was slippery and she fell face onto the mushy earth. She groaned loudly at her misfortune and stupidity, as she tried to get up out of the sloppy mess when twigs behind her crackled. She looked behind her with wide eyes to see nothing, then turned back around with a relieved sigh only to be face to face with a gnarled, fangy smirk.

"A helpless human in the forest," it said with a snickering growl. "Perfect, just when I was starting to get hungry."

* * *

**A/N: Oy! I'm so sorry for all of you who thought there was gonna be more action in this chapter. I thought I was going to write in some action, but I decided there needed to be a little bit more inbetween Chapter 7 and Chapter 9. So I PROMISE Chapter 9 will be the chapter with lots of action, and more romance..hehe! Um, this chapter took a long time to type, but I got through it! Yay! I hope you all like it! Please submit your comments and reviews! I'd greatly appreciated it! Oh and thank you, again, to all of you who have sent me comments! They have encouraged me so much! Thank you! **


	9. The Lord of Mondlicht's True Form

**A/N: All Inuyasha characters belong to Rumiko Takahashi!**

**The Long Awaited Adventure**

**by Ivaliny**

Chapter 9

"The Lord of Mondlicht's True Form"

* * *

The three found a big enough shelter for all of them to fit in, except AhUn's tail was stick out of the hut, but he didn't mind. Sesshoumaru sat in a corner while Jaken started a fire, gathering some of the chopped logs from a pile in the front entrance. Sesshoumaru found it very odd at how deserted and empty the village felt. It was even darker, giving it an eerie, nightmarish feel, which he didn't mind, except for the fact that something didn't seem right.

Outside of the village, the demon aura and human destruction was so strong, it was even making him sick, yet as they walked towards the village, the aura dwindled to almost nothing, and no human scents lingered, not even the ones that were supposed to be left clinging to clothes or mats. It was almost as if everyone just disappeared. There weren't even any horses are farm animals around. While examining the hut they had found to be the largest, they saw other traces of unfinished sewing, cooking, and clothes in piles beside their unfinished tasks. But still, there were no scents of anything, but a very faint demonic aura, even he almost missed it. The only scent he could really pick up were those of his companions and the coming storm. The situation was unsettling to him. He pondered more on it as he crossed his arms and furrowed his eyebrows. What demon could have done this? And if it wasn't a demon, then why were there clothes sitting piles in front of daily random, unfinished tasks.

Something else was unsettling to him. Actually it was Rin. The very thought of her out there in the forest, unable to defend herself, put a sickening feeling deep down at the bottom of his stomach. Why did she leave him at such a horrible time? The rain poured down harder above them. The sickening feeling grew more powerful as he realized he was the one who told her to leave. He lowered his head, furrowing his eyebrows even more as he wondered how far she had traveled in the rain. He even wondered if he should go look for her, but he slowly shooed that idea out of the way. He didn't want to care for her; not even a little bit, so the best thing to do was ignore her.

He changed his thoughts towards Warrik and his future plans of action. He could still find the castle with his keen sense of smell and tracking abilities he was blessed with, but he soon realized that once he would arrive, he still wouldn't know where Tenoh's sacred sword was. He cursed Miroku under his breath. Miroku was gone, and now he had no way of finding it. Well, there was still a small chance that his brother and the sorcerer were still alive, but those chances were ridiculously slim. Even though Miroku was gone, he could still find the sword, would just be harder. The wizard had said one thing that could help him, which caused a slight smirk across his still face. The sword was out in the open, which would make finding it a little less difficult.

Thinking about the sword and Miroku, led his thoughts back to Rin. _Maybe she wont be stupid, and come back to find me. _He mentally shook his head, _No, she'll be stupid.

* * *

_

The demon towered over her with a perverted, hungry stare. Her eyes were wide and her lips trembled in fear, which the demon seemed to enjoy. Soon more demons circled around her, smirking and snarling. Her body went cold as she froze in fear, breathing quickly as her heartbeat echoed in her ears. The demon bent down, moving a clawed finger up her leg. He licked his lips hungrily, and she let out a startled gasp, scrambling to get away from him. He growled at her frantic retreat, and quickly grabbed a clawed hand forcefully around her leg. She let out a scream as he jerked her towards him, painfully wrapping his hands around her arms, digging into her flesh. Rin cried, pleading for him to stop, while kicking and trying to pull herself away, wishing she wasn't so far away from Sesshoumaru. She had traveled too far away, so all hope in a rescue was lost to her.

* * *

Sesshoumaru knew something was very wrong as he thought more about Rin. He had a hard weight deep within that pounded furiously again him as horrible mental images of Rin, helpless and defenseless, attacked his mind. She was probably too far away for him to hear her, and the rain clouded her scent, so trying to find her was useless. He took in a deep breath, closed his mind, and focused on the sounds around him, because maybe there was still a chance for him to hear her.

He listened through the crackling fire, through the pitter patter against the wooden walls, through the thunderous booms, through the howling wind, until he heard something interesting. At first he thought it was just the wind, so he concentrated harder. His eyes widened in shock. It was a scream. It was a very faint, so faint in fact, that he almost missed it. It was Rin's scream.

* * *

Rin pulled harder and harder, still trying to get out of the demon's grasp as his companions watched, growling and sneering with excitement. Because it was raining, the demon dug his claws into her flesh, and every time she would wiggle about the claws would slip, and he would dig in even deeper, causing her to cry out in pain. He roughly pulled her closer, breathing rank breath upon her skin.

"What are you doing out here all alone in the rain?" he growled with amusement. "Don't you know there are demons in this forest?" His companions laughed maliciously. Rin looked away crying. "I'm so hungry." With that, he bent his head and bit into her shoulder as sharp fangs pierced her skin while blood trickled down her arm. She let out another pained, blood curdling scream. He kept digging his teeth in until the ground began to shake.

The demon removed his teeth and looked about curiously as the ground shook again, this time louder and closer. The sound of trees crackling and crashing to the ground was heard in the distance. Something big, something very big, was making it's way towards them. A monstrous growl was heard above them as big, sparkling, white fangs gleamed over head. The demons around Rin gasped, screamed, and ran, horrified by what they saw. The demon holding Rin held on tighter, watching dumbfounded as the monster bent down it's massive head, eating three of his companion in one chomp.

After all of the fleeing demons were in the belly of the monster, digesting in it's foul juices, it focused it's attention on Rin and her demon captor. The monster watched the two with large gray eyes as it moved forward, and Rin's brown eyes widened, finally seeing how the monster truly looked. It was a giant, menacing, werewolf type demon that towered far above the trees on four massive legs. The demon holding onto her made a slight gasp, horrified by the large demon in front of him. Out of fear and flight for survival, the demon threw Rin a few feet away, crashing her up against a tree's large trunk, and ran away as far and as fast as he could. Rin crumpled to the muddy forest floor, her vision going blurry as her forehead pounded above her eyes. She moved a hand to her forehead and realized that not only was water dripping down her face, but warm blood as well. The demon didn't get far away when he tripped in the mud, and through blurry vision, Rin saw the monster open it's large mouth and eat the demon.

Rin struggled to get up with her head pounding, shoulder burning, as she stumbled face down into the mud. The monster looked at her with a mischievous, humorous smirk. He reached out a large, clawed paw towards her. She screamed, crawling clumsily in the mud, when a massive claw snagged her leg, dragging her towards the monster, then letting go. The pain from the wound on her leg was excruciating. She struggled to get farther away, the wound on her leg sending shockwaves of a piercing pain through her body. The paw came back, this time catching her on her side, pushing her away from him. He was playing with her. She was being played with like a mouse being attacked by a cat. From fear and pain, she froze, which the monster found highly enjoyable. He was having fun.

The world around her became even more blurry. She was about to black out when a sudden whip of green light flashed across her vision, and the monster let out a thunderous roar as blood spattered from its arm. Someone was standing above her. It was Sesshoumaru, soaking wet with water dripping down his bangs, looking up at the monster with an indifferent glare. Rin gave a pained moan, and Sesshoumaru bent down beside her.

"Don't faint on me, human," he said with an annoyed growl. He quickly picked her up with one arm and leapt into the air before the monster's paw came down for a counter attack.

When he had arrived, he was suripsed to see she was still alive, and thankful that the monster was still playing. He set her down on a sloped, fallen tree trunk, and hadn't realized how injured she was until she moaned his name.

The monster came back and swiped at Sesshoumaru before he could turn around. Claws ripped across Sesshoumaru's chest, pulling off his armor, and leaving deep gashes. It wasn't often he let a demon get the best of him. This demon was fast for his size, he admitted, but he was faster. The monster gnashed his teeth towards Sesshoumaru as his whip snapped across the demon's face, blood splattering everywhere. The rain poured down even harder.

Rin lifted her head at the sound of the large demon's distress. Sesshoumaru moved about striking like a snake with his whip, but the demon was equally as fast. It infuriated him at how weak he had truly become. He wasn't even badly injured. He had much worse injuries than the ones he had acquired, yet this demon was getting the best of him, and he really didn't want to resort to his last option. Of course, before when he was fighting a large demon like this, he wasn't protecting anyone, but that shouldn't make any different now. He was getting annoyed, and wanted this duel to end quickly. He had to use his last option to make it quick.

Sesshoumaru leapt forward towards the monster who gnashed out towards him, not equally annoyed with the demon lord. Sesshoumaru moved to the left, dodging the attack as his hand glowed the same green as the whip, and shoved it into the monster's throat as far as he could. Warm flesh disintegrated around him as the monster swung its head back and forth trying to get him off. He pulled his arm out viciously, and leapt to the ground. He ran towards Rin and spun around quickly to face the writhing demon. She stood up and limped towards him, but something about him made her stop.

He was facing his back towards her, but something was happening to him. His back arched as he looked upwards, a deep growl vibrated deep inside him. Rin gasped at his eyes. They were turning blood red, and he let out a powerful roar. She took a stop back, confused and scared, while his face began to elongate and his fangs grew larger and more sharp. His whole facial features began to change. A fog great around him, even engulfing Rin, but she quickly scampered away. The fog was so think that Sesshoumaru was hidden, and the fog grew upwards towards the dark sky as the ground began to shake ferociously.

Rin stared upwards in horror as the fog dissipated, leaving a gigantic, ferocious, snarling white dog. It towered over her, it's tail twitching in agitation as it gave the monster a nasty snarl. She was confused. Who was this monster? But then she saw the crescent moon on his forehead, she stared with disbelief and awe. It was Sesshoumaru, and he was in his true demon form. She often remembered Miroku talking about demons who looked like humans often hid their true forms, because they usually had no reason to use their demon forms. They were already powerful enough without it. She knew Sesshoumaru was a strong demon, but she did wonder what his true form was. He was a ferocious, white dog demon.

Sesshoumaru rolled his head back with a large growl. Even though he was missing his left front leg, he stood strong and fierce. The monster began lifting its left front leg, and made a sneering snarl. The monster was mocking Sesshoumaru. The need to kill over took Sesshoumaru, but the need different than all of the other times. His blood thirst was being distracted, but by what? He didn't know, and he didn't care. He tried his best to ignore it, but it still loomed over him. For some reason, over the pounding of his fierce demon blood, he knew that if he used hi next attack something would go terribly wrong. Maybe it was because of the distraction that was fighting in the back of his mind. This was very odd to him. Usually when he was in this form, nothing but the thoughts of bloodshed and dominance vibrated through his whole body, so this distraction was something he was not used to. Also when he was in this form, the world he knew before vanished from his memory, or at least it was supposed to. _What could it be?_ He wondered to himself, but before he could ponder on it longer, the wolf beast lunged forward and attacked the distracted, three-legged dog with its monstrous teeth. Luckily though, Sesshoumaru was fast at dodging the teeth and barreled over the trees for a better position. This dance and destruction of the forest in the pouring rain continued on longer, until Sesshoumaru pushed the nagging feeling aside and used his most fatal attack.

He crouched down as much as he could with his one front leg and opened his mouth. A sizzling, green gas poured out of his mouth as he wafted it about with his head. The smell was sickening to Rin, and her heart quickened its pace as the gas moved slowly her way. The fumes reached the wolf-monster first, and it began to cough and gasp for air as the gas invaded its longs. Rin's eyes widened, realizing the fumes were poisonou, and were killing the monster. The monster hit the ground hard as Sesshoumaru continued wafting his fatal gas, which was growing even closer to Rin. Her injury on er her leg made it harder for her to get away. She let out a high pitched scream, as she stumbled, slipping, through the mud to get away from the poison.

A scream echoed through his ears, and before he could identify it, he had already turned back into his former self. It was only after he had changed back, did he realize the scream was from Rin. He looked about in the poisonous fog that he had created, and finally spotted her at the edge of it. He had to move fast. Another second and the poison would reach her fragile, human body. The fumes were already making her weaker, he noted, as a slight disgust of the fact entered his thoughts, but he quickly ignored it and leapt with in human power towards her rescue.

She had passed out once again, and the demon lord had come to her rescue. She awoke in a hut that was glowing from the fire in the middle of the one and only room. AhUn was curled up around her and Jaken and Sesshoumaru were at the other side of the room sitting quietly, which was weird for Jaken. Rin had noticed, in a very short time, that Jaken loved to hear himself speak, so his silence left her a little uneasy. She moved a bit and realized, though it wasn't as much as before, that she was in a lot of pain, and someone had bandaged her biggest wounds. Looking over at Sesshoumaru, she blushed. He looked back at her, tightened his crossed arms, and lifted his head as his nose stook up high in the air with his indifferent, snooty, attitude, which she was first accustomed with.

"How long was I asleep?" she asked him.

"A couple of hourse."

The hut fell silent, making her nervous. "Is it still raining?" she asked, trying to strike up a conversation, but he only ignored her. She sighed and laughed at herself. "I guess that was stupid question, sorry," she muttered softly to herself.

Once again the room fell silent, except for Jaken's occasional mutterings to himself that were quickly scolded by Sesshoumaru. They all sat like that for an hour. The memory of that day's events playing through their minds. She was surprised Sesshoumaru had gone looking for her, and had come to her rescue. She was embarrassed to think of the stupid mistake she had made that day, which made the uneasiness in the room unbearable.

"Thank you," she said finally. He looked down at her, and she went on. "Thank you for rescuing me today," she paused,"and I'm sorry for the inconvenience I had caused you."

Sesshoumaru couldn't help but be surprised. No one had ever thanked him, saying they were sorry, and actually meant it, but he could tell she really did. Although he didn't want to admit it, he was at least a little bit worried about her. The wounds she had received caused her to lose quite a bit of blood. He watched her try and sit up, but her leg injury shot a jolt of pain through her body, and he frowned.

The rain still pitter pattered across the roof. The storm still hadn't let up. He stood up and walked out of the hut before Rin could protest his leaving. She watched the flap swish back and for in bewilderment. His sudden exit left her a bit concerned, and noting Jaken's reaction, he was just as confused. But she didn't think long on it when another tight, jabbing ache in her leg shot up her back. She sighed, remembering just how horrifying the whole experience was, and how pathetically weak she was. She didn't even try to protect herself, all she did was try to run away. Realization that she had a long way to go in her training, and how short of a time she actually had to do so, sickened her. Now, her new injuries made her destination of Augapfel even farther away. She was no math against Warrik, especially not now, and she is the only one who could save Princess Kagome and Efeu.

Depression set in on her already weak heart. Remembering the way Sesshoumaru had suddenly left the hut, she wondered if she had said too much. Now, she wished she could take back her apology, worried that she had somehow offended him. What if she had made him angry? What if he wouldn't come back? _No, he wouldn't have rescued me to just leave me alone, would he have?_, she wondered.

As if to set her mind as ease, the hut flap opened and a wet Sesshoumaru came walking in. His face was blank, emotionless, as droplets of water dripped down his silver bangs and face. He didn't even blink them back, he just let them drip into his eyes. Rin wanted to smile or let out a big sigh of relief at his return, but she was too weary. He sat himself back down in the spot he was sitting in before, crossed his legs, and unfolded a large leaf with a sigh. Jaken looked at his lord, opened his mouth, but quikcly shut it in fear of his master's glare. Sesshoumaru put a few leaves of some plant in his mouth and began cheweing as the droplets of water from his thick silver hair streamed down his face.

"You went out into the rain to eat leaves?" Rin asked curiously.

Sesshoumaru looked over at her with his normal, bored expression and quickly spit out the leaves, now a mushy gloop, onto the large leaf. It was so fast that she almost missed it all together. "You're in pain aren't you?" he asked before stuffing more of the leaves into his mouth.

"Well, yes," she replied. Of course she was in pain. She was a human chew toy. He said nothing and did nothing but chew and spit. Rin watched him wondering what his next move was to be, as he was lost in his own world. Occasionally he would frown and she wondered if the leaves tasted bad. He wasn't thinking about the leaves, although they did taste bad, but more on what he had just discovered as he sniffed out the plants. He knew now why there were no villagers, and he wasn't happy about it at all. There was now a new threat that surrounded them, but thankfully the threat didn't want to come near him. That was a good thing for sure, but he was worried the threat be get bored waiting in the rain.

He finally finished chewing and spitting, picked up the masticated mash of leaves and saliva set on the large leaf and stood up, walking over to Rin. She stared up at him with large, curious brown eyes as he kneeled down beside her. He set the leaf down and looked at her a bit uneasy. Waiting patiently for his next move, she watched his eyebrows move up and down with what looked like frustration. Without warning he quickly opened up the sleeping bag, which made Rin gasp in horror and surprise, reaching weakling for the warm protection she just lost. Quickly, but gently, he began to unbandage the wound on her leg.

"What are you doing?" She asked panicked slightly, as he cleaned her wound and began to apply the masticated plant to her injuries. He stared intently at the wounds, trying desperately not to look at the rest of her bare legs. An almost animalistic instinct in him wanted to look, but at the same time the though nauseated him to no end. After all, she was only human.

"It will help your wounds heal faster," he simply stated. She let out a silent "oh" and sighed with relief. Actually, looking at him now, she felt really bad for him. She had caused him so much trouble, and now he was mending her wounds. She wanted him to stop. He had already done so much for her, even risking his own life, yet she knew how much he despised humans. So why did he save her? Why was he helping her at all? If he hated humans so much, why help her? He gently rubbed the burning ointment upon her wounds. She wanted to tell him to stop, and let her do it herself, but the soft, gentle circular motions were to calming to ignore.

Looking into his flowing, golden eyes that flickered from the dancing fire, she noticed that his intent stare wasn't as cold and heartless looking as all of the other times he stared at her. Remembering what Inuyasha had told her, she realized that Sesshoumaru was much different than the stories his half brother told her. Inuyasha made him sound like he was a cold, heartless bastard, actually, those were his words exactly, who only thought of himself and no one else. Maybe Inuyasha never tried to get to know the real Sesshoumaru. She smiled faintly, and Sesshoumaru was surprised by the sudden change of emotion on her pale face as he finished bandaging up the wound on her leg.

_What is it that makes Sesshoumaru act the way he does?_ She still wondered to herself. He was full of mystery. He hides everything inside him, so that nothing can come out. The real Sesshoumaru was probably locked away deep inside his soul years ago. Oh well, she didn't mind his mysterious masquerade. Actually, she enjoyed it. There were always unexplainable mysteries around the world, which is what got her so interested into the paranormal. The mystery of the "real Sesshoumaru" was something she was ready for, and the cracking of his had shell is what she waited for.

She was staring at him with her soft, brown eyes, which made his stomach flip flop and his face and hand grew hot and sweaty our of nervousness. He had no idea why the look she was giving him was making him act so strange, so he tried to ignore it, which seemed almost impossible, and leaned forward to get the part of the mending he loathed the most: her shoulder. It was much easier when she was unconscious, though he kept her modesty even then, the fact that he now had to do it while she was awake made him even more nervous and soon a red tint marked his cheeks. It was too hard for him to suppress. He felt tense and awkward, wishing there was something to break her stare so he could get on with the task before him.

As if to answer his wish, something behind his bloodied kimono swung forward and hit Rin right in the middle of her forehead in shimmer, silver glory. She immediately winced, bringing her good hand to her forehead. His eyes widened in shocked, disbelief, stopping the swinging object from hitting her a second time.

"Ow," Rin whined, rubbing the limp on her head,"that hurt!"

He held the object in his hand, disbelieving what he was touching. He couldn't help but smirk. Rin watched Sesshoumaru, amazed at the look of joy on his face, and the way his eyes tenderly looked up and down the necklace around his neck. It was almost as if he were looking at the pendant for the first time. She still rubbed the growing red lump on her forehead, and began to laugh. Jaken looked at her with annoyance, and AhUn watched in animalistic curiosity.

"I guess that was pay back for hitting you with the stick,"she laughed, ignoring all the pain it caused her.

Sesshoumaru wasn't listening to her. He was too transfixed and memorized by the pendant in his hand. Then he did the unexpected: he chuckled. At first it sounded like an awkward cough, but he did again and agian, louder and louder, until his body shook with each gutteral vibration. Rin quickly stopped her own laughing and stared at the silver-haired demon beside her in disbelief. Jaken watched, jaw opened, letting out a strange gwuaking noise at his lord's strange and out-of-character behavior. Even AhUn sat up, ears straight, with large, wide eyes.

Soon the demon realized his company's stares were all on him. He looked at the three, cleared his throat, and resumed his famous stoic expression. Jaken was still in shock, sputtering out incoherent words as Rin smiled.

"That was unexpected," she giggled," so what is that object that exacted its revenge upon my forehead?" she teased.

"A family heirloom," he answered as he gently pulled away the top of her clothing. She blushed uncontrollably. He was so close she could feel his calm breaths on her neck. He tried desperately to concentrate on the wound instead of her blushing cheeks. It was awkward for both of them, especially him. He could sense her eyes on his left arm again, he found she often stared at this vacancy where his left arm should be, and wished for something, anything to break their awkward silence. He even went as far as to wish that Jaken would start rambling on about the usual boring stuff that he often ignored. He want anything but the silence.

"And a family heirloom makes you laugh?" she asked, obviously still amused by his before behavior. Sesshoumaru winced, and mentally pleaded that the before wish was taken back. He wanted anything other than this topic.

"No," he replyed simply, hoping it would detour her away from the question that would eventually lead to a dread topic: family. Actually, the only reason he had laughed to begin with, was because he forgot he was wearing it. He thought that the pendant was destroyed with everything else he had owned. He thought everything his father owned and honored dearly was destroyed. Normally he wouldn't wear the pendant anywhere, but he remembered the reason why he wore it. It was to rub in Inuyasha's face. He laughed because not everything of his father was lost. Now he treasured the heirloom, and a small flicker of hope surfaced. Maybe his father and his own honor wasn't totally lost.

"It's very impressive," Rin stated with admiration for the intricate pendant. It lightly swung near her chin as Sesshoumaru made the circular motions on her wounded shoulder, so she saw every beautiful detail that shimmered and sparkled against the warm fire. It was on a long, twisted, silver chain that seemd to sparkle like magic on it's own, but the most beautiful part was the crescent shaped jewel, which was cut so perfect that it looked as if it were alive. The jewel was a deep purple that was probably the most beautiful purple she had ever seen. It reminded her of the crescent moon on Sesshoumaru's own forehead that was now covered by his silver bangs.

Sesshoumaru intended on leaving the subject alone, but he spoke before he could stop himself. "The Mondlicht Pendant is probably one of the most valuable possessions in my family. It was created thousands of hears ago when a precious stone was found in a cave deep in the Mondlicht Mountains. It is so rare, it's the only stone of it's kind. A demon that was known for his remarkable powers in jewelry making, made the pendant for my great grandfather. It's said that the pendant will give my family great power, fortune, and luck. This is the only thing I have left of my family's legacy. "

Hearing Sesshoumaru tale of the pendant, and how sincere he was, it reminded her of her own family and friends in Barnesby, and wondered if they missed her at all. For the first time since she had arrived in this strange world, she missed them, but her homesickness lasted only for a short time. The soft gentle touch of Sesshoumaru's clawed hand on her shoulder brought her gently back to the present.

"You were close to your family?" she asked. "To be honest, I never had a strong connection to my own. I've always felt somewhat alone."

"I guess you can say I was, or at least until Inuyasha's birth," he answered looking for the first time from her wound to her face. He was surprised that when he did so, that he realized she was quite beautiful. He never thought a human could be, but the way her unruly, unkept brown hair sprawled around her creamy skin, and how her eyes shone like soft, polished, brown stones in a clear creek, she looks so pretty. Of course he has seen a few beautiful demon women, but in the firelight, Rin was ten times more beautiful than even them. He was embarrassed by these new thoughts, and he even began to sweat as his stomach did more flip flops. _What has this human woman done to me?_

"You don't like Inuyasha, do you? I mean I gathered that since you two fought all the time," she paused, staring at his eyes there were back upon her shoulder," I guess what I'm trying to ask is, why do you hate him so much, other than the fact that he is half human?"

He narrowed his eyes slightly, but didn't answer. She looked away, ashamed and embarrassed for asking such a personal question. He finished bandaging her shoulder and sta back on his knees. Already, the ointment was making her feel much better. It sort of tingled around on the skin.

"I'm sorry," she replied softly.

"I don't like Inuyasha, because his perfect blood is tainted." Rin looked away, even more embarrassed, because she also was tainted in his eyes.

One again, he wanted to leave the topic, but his mouth kept going. "After Inuyasha was born, my father spent less time with me, avoided his duties as a lord, and brought weakness into our family. His love for a human weakened him, and he died for it."

"I'm sorry," she spoke sincerely," so you were jealous of Inuyasha?"

Sesshoumaru looked away into the fire," No."

Rin frowned," But that still doesn't explain why you hate him. There is a reason for everything, Sesshoumaru." She was not touching, touchy territory.

"I just hate him."

"No you don't," Rin replied.

Sesshoumaru snorted,"What gives you the authority to say such things? You're inferior to me, so what makes you think you can tell me what I hate, and what I don't hate?"

"It's simple," Rin sighed,"If you can't think of any reasons to hate him, then you don't, which means there is another reason for your hostility towards your brother."

Sesshoumaru was getting annoyed. He hated this topic, and he hated where it was going. That girl had no right to know anything about him, but the look she was giving him wasn't one out of curiosity, but of concern. He was to laugh. _Concern? For me?_ For a moment he was slightly touched, but as usual he pushed such foolish emotions aside, and decided he wasn't going to say anything. He was having a rough night keeping his emotions and himself in check, and he couldn't think of a reason why this was happening. No, that was a lie, he knew perfectly well why he was acting the way he was. It was the human woman, Rin. She distracted him in battle with the demon, and she was distracting him right now, which irritated him. But that wasn't what irritated him the most. What irritated him the most was that he liked her distracting, womanly nature. Even now as she lay on a mat staring at him, she was distracting him. Never in his life did he think a human was beautiful, until now. He should hate the way she was making him feel, and to a degree he did, but the way she was just helplessly lying there, and the way her lips were slightly parted as she breathed, brought feelings he had never had before, and he liked it. He liked it a lot. And he was so close to her that she could feel her own body heat.

Actually, he wanted to laugh out loud again. He wanted to laugh at how ironic his life had become. No, this wasn't the first time he realized fate had brought the pride hurting, irony, his way. It was only just three days ago that it sickened him to even look at her, and now he couldn't keep his eyes off. But what really bewildered him, was how fast things had changed. It slightly scared him to think his feelings could change so quickly. Yes, the demon lord of Mondlicht was scared. Scared because he was turning into his father. The part of his father that he hated. He even wondered if his father's feelings for Inuyasha's mother had changed as quickly as his, or was it slow and gradual, taking years? Then a horrifying thought came to him: the reason his feelings had changed so quickly were because he was weaker than his father.

There's that word again, weakness. That word had haunted him ever since his father had betrayed him. His father was so strong, yet easily weakened. How could he be weaker than his father? He had not taken a human woman to bed. He had not fallen in love with one. If anything, he was the strongest, not the weakest. But it could all change. The way he felt right then, anything could happen._ No that's ridiculous. I am Lord Sesshoumaru of the Mondlicht Kingdom, and no human will take that honor, the only honor I have, away from me. _

Then and there, he remembered why he despised humans so much, and looking at her right now disgusted him. Good, he was back to normal, and he had regained his sanity. All was well. He stood up with his nose held high, and walked over to a corner away from her. Distance was a good thing. He sat down cross legged and resumed his usual stoic stare at nothing in particular. Rin was disappointed Sesshoumaru didn't say anything more, and even moved away from her, but she knew there was always tomorrow, so she didn't say any more.

Suddenly a horrifying, high pitched, yelping was heard outside of the hut. Rin's hear stopped beating as her eyes shot wide open. Jaken fell backwards in surprise and alarm as his body began to shake out of fear. Even AhUn's face held a look of panic. The only one who stayed calm was Sesshoumaru.

"Wh-what was that milord?" Jaken asked shakily. "Was that what I think it is, milord?"

Sesshoumaru said nothing. Jaken squawked.

"Oh no! It is what I think it is!" He stood up and looked around the hut in horror.

"What is it, Jaken?" Rin asked, now extremely frightened by the way toad reacted.

"The missing villagers. The piles of clothes," he pointed at a pile of clothes with his staff, then pointed it as Sesshoumaru accusingly, mouth dropping. "You've brought us into a trap!" he took in a deep breath, looking scared and hurt," And you probably knew all along!"

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**A/N: Whew! I finally finished Chapter 9! As promised, it's longer, more action packed, and romance filled! I hope you all love this chapter as much as I had fun writing it! I'm sorry it took so long, but college life has caught up with me. Sorry for Sesshoumaru's occassional out-of-character-ness! Oh well. lol. Sesshoumaru is hot, and I had a blast writing this chapter! The next chapter will be exciting! Hehe! So what exactly is out there in the woods waiting for them? You'll have to find out next chapter! Isn't that a stinker?**

**Anywho, reviews would be much appreciated, and thank you to all of you who reviewed last time! I'd hug you all a million times if I could! Please submit reviews, and thank you so much for taking the time to read this really long chapter! Doh, I don't know exactly how many words there are. Sorry!**


	10. Things Changed and Forgotten

**A/N: All Inuyasha characters belong to Rumiko Takahashi! **

The Long Awaited Adventure

By Ivaliny

Chapter 10

"Things Changed and Forgotten"

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"What's going on?" Rin asked Jaken, "you're making no sense."

"Tell her, milord! I know you know what's happening," Jaken said in a shrill cry. "You always know, milord."

Rin and Jaken looked at Sesshoumaru, waiting for answers, but none came. Sesshoumaru just stared into the crackling fire as if he was only one in the world. Rin's stomach ached and her limbs began to shake. No one would tell her what was happening or what those shrieks were. Jaken seemed to be more scared and jittery than normal, which made her own heart sink in fear, but on the other hand, Sesshoumaru was acting as if nothing were happening, of course he seemed to always be calmed and relaxed. She was confused.

"Oh, Lord Sesshoumaru!" Jaken pleaded, "how are you so calm?"

Sesshoumaru's eyes narrowed slightly, but he still said nothing.

"Sesshoumaru," Rin whispered out of fear," can you please tell me what's going on? Is there something out there?"

"Yes," he said," and yes, we're surrounded." Rin's eyes widened further.

"I knew it!" Jaken yelled.

Rin sat up, ignoring the pain she felt coursing through her body,"Are you certain?"

He looked bored,"Of course, I never lie."

"Why didn't you tell me, milord?" Jaken asked almost in tears,"And how are you not afraid? We're trapped and surrounded."

"I am not afraid of things that I can destroy so quickly."

Jaken was obviously distressed by his master's reaction to the situation, and only wanted to complain. "I bet you knew what we were getting into before we even arrived at this village." The toad gasped,"And you willingly made me go and investigate knowing I would probably die!" Then the small, green demon began to wail most noisily.

Sesshoumaru wanted to roll his eyes and throw something very heavy and very painful towards his annoying servant. He hated crying, and he especially hated noisy crying. While he was busy ignoring and mentally throwing things at Jaken, Rin was crawling her way over towards the corner where Sesshoumaru sat.

She was a few feet from him when he finally noticed her presence. He was surprised and annoyed to see her so close. He wondered, maybe out of guilt, if she had crawled all this way on her own, but of course she did, how else would she have done it? She crawled a little bit further then propped herself against the wall beside Sesshoumaru and sighed. He looked down at her labored breathing, but did not linger.

"What exactly is out there?" she asked through deep breaths of winced pain.

"Kriechen," he replied.

She quirked an eyebrow,"What are Kriechen?"

"Demons."

She was getting nowhere. A Kriechen far off in the distance gave a blood curdling howl, which was replied by other similar howls, then silence. Each time she heard one of the Kriechen her skin crawled. She inched closer to him, hoping he did not notice, but he did. He grew more tense, straightening his back, and raising his chin higher.

"What are they like?" she asked in a whisper.

"Irritating." She couldn't help but sigh, because he was being of no help.

"They're a clan of demons that use an old form of magic to trap and steal souls, including the victim's body, to fuel their own survival. Kriechen would suck the souls out of people, then would send their flesh to an underworld holding cell. They do this so that if the Kriechen were destroyed, their victim's souls would be lost forever and could never return to their bodies, becoming eternally damned." Jaken said, then shook with chills as he stared at Rin. "And do you know how they take your soul?" She shook her head. "They torture their victims with horrible visions and nightmares, so that they would live their worst nightmares, driving them to the point of insanity, before taking their souls."

Her jaw dropped in astonishment,"You can't be serious! You're just trying to scare me, Jaken."

"Shut up, you stupid human! I wouldn't lie about some so horrifying!"

"Have you ever seen one, Jaken?"

Jaken shook his head, "No. No one has. The only thing to identify them by are their shrieking howls."

A cold chill climbed over her body, creaking along her back as another howl echoed throughout the forest floor. She was starting to get scared. So many traumatizing events had happened in the last few days, that she didn't think her body and mind could take anymore. She just wanted a time of peace, even if it was for only a day. The howls grew louder and louder, but it was hard for her to decipher how close or where the Kriechen were. She wished Miroku was here. For once, she wanted to welcome him lecherous touch on her butt, just to know that he was there, close to her, to ease her frightened and weak body, because she knew that Sesshoumaru would never dream of doing such a thing.

Sesshoumaru's face grew hot as he noticed her scooting closer towards him. _Was she really that frightened_?he wondered as his golden eyes watched her with mild interest. His emotions had been all over the place that night, and even minutes before he was utterly disgusted with her, but now as she inched closer, he could sense and smell her fear emitting from her body, and he liked it. The demon inside of him liked the smell of her fear, but at the same time, the thing about himself that he had been trying to control for days, wanted to comfort her, reassure her that no demon would ever lay its nasty, clawed fingers on her again. He didn't think this way because he liked her, but because he realized that when she was passed out on the mat that she in turn could be of great help to him. She was Miroku's apprentice afterall, and even though she is a beginner, her probably had left her clues as to where the sword is, the sword that could not only give him immense power, but restore his honor that he had lost when Warrik destroyed his castle. He needed her.

Another howl from a Kriechen made Rin jump, which startled Sesshoumaru, but only a little. Jaken opened his ugly mouth and let out a few curses, either to his lord or to the Kriechen. The toad demon shivered with fright, clutching his staff tighter, giving Sesshoumaru an accused look, as AhUn, distressed by Jaken's behavior, let out a soft, pathetic whimpers. Sesshoumaru had had enough. The way his servant was acting was not only extremely annoying, but also very embarrassing.

"Jaken, are you frightened?" he asked in a commanding and uncaring voice.

Jaken shrank back and stuttered,"N-no, mi-milord!"

Sesshoumaru didn't believe him, and waited for him to tell the truth. Jaken could never keep a lie, especially when Sesshoumaru did on thing in particular. Sesshoumaru smiled, his sharp fangs gleaming in the firelight. Jaken gave out a squawk

"The Kriechen will kill us, milord!"

His smile disappeared, and Rin watched the interesting way these two were acting with curiosity and amusement. She hadn't expected him to smile. Actually, his smile wasn't that comforting at all, and she could tell Jaken was nervous. She too was a bit nervous and scared just by looking at the way his smile craved for blood.

"What happened to your loyal faith in me, Jaken? You've even said yourself that no one could defeat me, so why no faith now? Do you not think that I can defeat these creatures?" Sesshoumaru asked, not really caring whether or not if the toad replied.

"No one can defeat Kriechen and live!"

Sesshoumaru wanted to roll his eyes the way Inuyasha usually did, but he decided to use his own method, by picking up a log and throwing it at Jaken. The toad fell backwards with a squawk, lifted his finger in the air and quickly said in a daze manor,"Lord Sesshoumaru can beat anything!"

_This was fun_, the thought, always enjoying to use Jaken as target practice. He picked up another log, which made Jaken add," and even Kriechen!" the toad whimpered a little,"please, milord, don't throw another log at me."

Rin flinched slightly as another log went flying throught the air, hitting Jaken on the head, which made him pass out. She watched in stunned silence, as a smirk grew across the demon prince's face.

"That was rude!" she said, wanting to put her hands on her hips as if she were scolding a small child.

He looked down at her in surprise, forgetting that she was there beside him, and now was glaring at him. "And you throwing sticks at me isn't?"

Her jaw dropped,"That was an accident, and besides, I've already apologized."

Sesshoumaru didn't hold back his emotions this time, and rolled his eyes as he picked up a tiny piece of bark from a log beside him, and through it lightly at her. The bark hit her on the cheek and splattered into tinier pieces. Letting out a gasp in shock, she picked up her own piece of bark from the firewood and chunked it at the dog demon. It hit him on his neck and fell down into his kimono. Rin let out a triumphant "Ha!" but didn't duck in time when the same piece smacked her in the forehead. She couldn't hold it in anymore, she burst into laughter. She didn't know why she was laughing, because they were both acting childish. Maybe it was because laughing was something she hadn't done since her friends were killed, and it just needed to escape, but whatever the reason, she laughed and laughed.

Sesshoumaru looked at her in confusion, wondering why this human girl was laughing so hard. All he did was throw bark at her, what's so funny about that? Unfortunately for him, he was beginning to understand why his father always said "laughter was contagious". The way her nose wrinkled and her eyes squinted was indeed quite amusing, but every time she gasped for another breath of air to only be giggled out, made something inside of him wanted to explode out. The urge got stronger and stronger until suddenly his own laughter was ringing in their ears. It didn't last long though, and soon they were both calming down. Of course he was much faster at doing so, but also found Rin's quieting giggles somewhat sad. It's not like he had never laughed before, and he actually laughed a lot when he was younger, before Inuyasha was born, but usually it was over someone's misfortune or pain, never something as random as throwing pieces of wood. It wasn't even over that, it was Rin's laugh that made him laugh. The girl from somewhere completely different has made the emotions he has tried for years to bury, to just spring up in unexpected ways.

"I'm sorry, Sesshoumaru, I don't know where that came from," she blushed. "I haven't laughed like that in so long. It felt nice." Leaning up against his right arm, she let out a pained sigh. The laugh was good, but all of it made her wounds ache ferociously. He said nothing, and did nothing, but only looked across the room at the fire, she assumed lost in his own world. He definitely was a strange one, seemingly always staring into space with an indifferent glare. His golden eyes melting around his surrounding as his pointy, almost elven ears took in each tiny sound. There were so many things she wished she could ask him, but the likelihood of him actually answering one of the questions without a vague answer was almost impossible.

She was breathing hard, probably from the pain her wounds were sending her, but he found it oddly relaxing. To be honest, he had never been this close to a human woman without having an arousal of selfish desires. He was strangely relaxed though. Actually, over the past few days, he had felt himself relax more and more, and mostly in the evening when all they did was sit around the campfire in silence. Her presence was warm. Even that first night making camp, he found her presence warm and inviting.

The scent of her fear seemed to have disappeared until a much louder and closer howl rang throughout the forest, and answered by a distant one. Her soft brown eyes widened, her body tensed, and she drew in an intake of air, then relaxed again when the howls were over. He looked down at her slightly, watching her eye lashes flutter with every blink, and the skin on her cheeks were slightly flushed. He didn't understand why, but he was very attracted to her at that moment. As she looked up at him, he looked away with a cold glare, which made her heart sink.

"Sesshoumaru?" she asked quietly.

He looked back at her, blinking slowly in an indifferent way.

"I've been thinking a lot about Warrik lately, and I feel," she laughed at herself softly as a very small smile graced her lips," scared."

Without thinking, his eyes grew softer and he quirked his head to the side questionably.

"How am I supposed to defeat this guy when all I can do is throw sticks and have strange dreams that somehow predict the future? I don't even have any ways to defend myself." She paused and stared into the fire, which seems to be her favorite thing to stare at lately. "I guess, I'm scared of dying."

_Dying?_ He though to himself. He too used to be scared of the thought, but after what happened at Mondlicht, and to his brother, he realized he will die someday also.

"You will not die, Rin," he answered a bit coldly.

"How do you know that?" she asked in tears. "All of my life I prayed for an adventure, an adventure where I was the hero, and the bad got what was coming to them. Now that it is all to real, I never expected it to be so scary. I thought I was strong, but I'm weak, and the aspect that death is far too close is terrifying."

"You will not die, because I will not let it happen," he said a little softer than before.

"Are you sure?" she asked suspiciously.

"I never lie."

A few hours later, and they were still sitting side by side watching the fire in welcomed, relaxing silence. Sesshoumaru guess it was around midnight, and they hadn't heard a single Kriechen for about an hour; although, he knew that they were still out there. Rin would occasionally drift off to sleep, then suddenly wake up in a start, startling both of them. She was now sleeping softly against his arm, her breathing soft and slow. He had decided that he would not fall asleep this night, want to risk an unexpected attack from the Kriechen. At first, he thought the Kriechen weren't really a threat, just possibly curious, but now he thought otherwise. Still, he knew however, that they would not initiate anything that night, because they still seemed to be a bit wary of him, but who knows they they'll think tomorrow.

Rin mumbled something in her sleep, and snuggled up closer to him as his body grew rigid and his cheeks turned a bright crimson red. While sitting there, he wondered what she had meant when she said she prayed for adventure in her life. _Was her life before really that dull?_ Noticing her peasantry attire that was old and withered, he knew she had to have led a dull life. All peasants were dull, doing the same task over and over again, even though, he himself led the same life over and over again, dull and unsatisfying for hundreds of years, yet he still considered himself more superior to her.

As the night went on, he found it highly satisfying to watch her sleep, although, there were a few times he wanted to shove her off of him, like the time she moved suddenly and him across the face. It was probably a good thing though, he was beginning to fall asleep, so in a way, she helped him keep alert. Plus, the warmth of her body and the way she kept snuggling up against him was making him sweaty and hot, which annoyed him. He was a bit uncomfortable as well, but he didn't dare move in risk of waking her from her peaceful slumber.

Soon the sun began to rise, and the morning air was sweet from the rain that night. It was a nice morning, but it disturbed him greatly. Even though the sun was poking its shiny bald head, and the greenery of the forest was bright, healthy, and beautiful, there was no sound. No rustling of the leaves being caressed by the morning wind. No birds chirping and singing their heavenly songs. No forest creatures stirring for their early morning duties and foraging. Nothing. Dead silence. It was very unsettling to him.

Rin stirred beside him as a soft coo escaped her lips, and her eyes fluttered slowly open, looking around the hut in what look like blank confusion. Her neck was stiff, her back ached, and her wounds sent out a dull numbing pain. She sat up slowly, stretching her arms as high into the air as she could, ignoring every signal of pain her body sent out.

Remembering Sesshoumaru was beside her, she smiled at him. "Good morning! I see the sun is coming out, and isn't it beautiful?"

Sesshoumaru frowned and shrugged his reply.

"Did you sleep there all night?" she asked feeling a bit guilty.

He didn't reply, and instead stood up without a word, almost knocking the girl over. It was good to stand up again. His bottom was numb, his legs were cramping, and his shoulder hurt from the pressure she had put on it in her sleep. His legs were screaming out in pain, but it did not show on his face. He quickly exited the hut, swiftly and elegantly, but before he could exit all the way, she called out to him.

"Are the Kriechen gone?" Sesshoumaru sighed and left the hut, the flap swinging back and forth, leaving her confused and upset.

The rising sun shone brightly on his hair, and the rain from the night before gave the wood a beautiful earthly glow. The ground was muddy as he walked around the empty village, avoiding massive puddles that lay in his way. He agreed with Rin, it was indeed a beautiful morning, and he loved the morning after a night's rain. But this one was different, which found very difficult to enjoy. There was no wind, not even the slightest breeze. The world around him seemed to have stopped, as if it were frozen in time. Even the scent of the morning was different, maybe because of the lack of wind, but he noticed there was hardly even a scent, which disturbed him the most.

As he walked around investigating the village further, he could feel the presence of the Kriechen prying their eyes upon him. He couldn't pinpoint where they were. Sometimes it felt as though they would be right beside him, then in the next instant, they were far away. He guessed that because there was no breeze, following a scent would be impossible. Sesshoumaru didn't like it. He felt trapped, and he absolutely hated it, which led him to the conclusion that they should all leave this area immediately.

Before turning around and heading back to the hut and his companions, a shuffle and the sound of twigs and vegetation breaking not far away caught his attention. Without hesitation, he lunged towards the direction, poisonous claws ready to strike. His eyes gave a ferocious glare just before his claws punctured the living flesh of a demon.

"Sesshoumaru," the demon called out before the poison melted its skin. For some reason, this voice made Sesshoumaru stop dead in his tracks as he looked, for the first time, at the demon before him. Sesshoumaru made a choking gasp as his arm dropped to his side, and he stumbled backwards in disbelief, his mouth opened in dumb shock. He blinked a few times before composing himself back to his stoic manner.

"Sesshoumaru", the demon said again in a deep, caring tone as it reached its arms out to the demon prince.

"Who are you?" Sesshoumaru asked angrily, pushing the demon away.

The demon looked at him in hurt, sad eyes," My son, it's been a long time."

"I am not your son," Sesshoumaru replied with annoyance. "I am the great Inutaisho of Mondlicht's song, and he is dead."

"Stop acting defiant, Sesshoumaru, I am he. Just because I have not been around for a while doesn't mean you can be disrespectful of me."

"I can and I will, because you are not him."

The demon sighed," I guess, you have grown up. You are not fearful of me anymore."

Sesshoumaru's eyes narrowed. The situation was confusing. The demon in front of him looked and sounded like his father, but he was sure his father was no longer living, so they only conclusion was that this was a trick.

"Who are you?" he spat," and if you do not answer, I will surely kill you."

The demon stood straight and matched the younger demon's glare. "You foolish boy. I am Lord Inutaisho of Mondlicht. The demon who slew a thousand demons with one swoop of his sword. The demon who conquered demon tribes. The demon who sired and ungrateful son, and the demon who loved a human woman." The demon looked at Sesshoumaru squarely in the eyes," I am he."

Sesshoumaru narrowed his eyes even more in anger. "Liar," he spat, "Inutaisho is no more! Prepare to die, filth!"

"But I am your father, Sesshoumaru!" The demon almost pleaded with the younger one," Believe me!"

"No."

The demon pointed at Sesshoumaru," Look! That's the family pendant I gave you so many years ago! You are my hier," his eyes softened," you're my son!"

For some reason, something inside of him changed. Even though he knew this demon before him was a lie, something inside of him wanted to believe. The more he resisted the notion, the more he began to really believe that the demon was his father. He knew his father was dead, but to reason unexplainable to him, he could not remember how he arrived at that conclusion.

The demon inched forward, hands outstretched until Sesshoumaru was in his embrace. Sesshoumaru flinched and thought about pulling away, but his body would not move as he returned the embrace.

"Ah, my powerful son, I haven't done this to you since you were small."

Sesshoumaru's voice did not soften,"I do not remember."

"You were a sweet boy, and you do not remember?"

"No," he replied simply, a cold tone wrapping around the word.

His father grimaced at the reply, stopping the embrace, and looked at his son in disappointment. "I see you have changed a lot. You're even colder than from what I can remember." His father walked away with a sigh.

"After your mother died, almost the very instant of her death, I watched your heart ice over. You were cynical in your replies, and your thirst for blood and death grew. I never saw your beautiful smile again."

Sesshoumaru's eyes grew even colder,"How dare you bring up mother. I grew up to be the way I am because her death proved to me how short even our lives are. Mother grew weak and sick, so I knew I had to become strong. I vowed to myself that nothing will make me weak. Every joke or laughter haunted me with unexplainable emotions, emotions that let my gaurd down. Mother was an emotional woman, she laughed all the time, she cried, she grew angry. Her emotions proved weakness."

"You're such a fool," growled his father, " A life cold and heartless is not a life at all, but an empty shell! You have already died, my son! Physically, no, but your heart has died. You will die old and alone."

Sesshoumaru growled as his upper lip curled in anger. "I will not die! Death does not strike the strong."

His father shook his head. Sesshoumaru smiled cynically,"Take your bastard son for an instance."

"Do not speak of Inuyasha in such a way," his father snapped.

Sesshoumaru snorted,"He fell in love with a pathetic parasite of a human, and he was physically weaker thank I, and yet he now lies in digestive fluids, and fecal remains of a lowly dragon. Now explain how I am alive and he is not."

The demon before him growled deep in his chest and brought up his arm to hit the younger one, but was blocked by Sesshoumaru's fast reflexes.

"How dare you speak of your own brother in that way!" roared the older demon in a low, gruffed voice.

"He is the son of a human!"

"He is also my son," his father's expression grew suddenly sad. "You forgot your promise to me, didn't you?"

The quick change in his father's expression made him feel slightly guilty. This argument had gotten way out of control, and this wasn't the way he wanted to speak to his father. The things he said, he knew, were way out of line.

"What promise?" he asked, restoring his monotone voice.

"The promise you made to protect your brother and family."

"I made no such promise."

The demon walked towards him, and took the crescent moon pendant in his hands. "But you did. You did the very second I gave you this pendant. This pendant represents everything you protect and hold dear to your heart. That includes the estate, the people and demons living in your kingdom, and your brother."

"This was never discussed," grumbled Sesshoumaru.

His father shook his head in disappointment,"I have failed then. I taught you these values everyday of your life, but because you grew distant and your heart began to harden, all of these became lost to you." His father looked almost hurt. "You've lost your honor, and everything you should hold dear. They're all gone, and you will never gain them back."

"Father, I am sorry to disappoint you, but there must be a way to gain it all back!" he said almost desperately.

"No. Can you bring back your people? Can you resurrect your brother? No, they are gone forever."

"Is there any way to restore my honor though?"

"Until the day you can restore your kingdom, resurrect your brother, and learn to love, you never will."

"Love?"

"Love your home, love your people, and lover your brother."

"That's impossible!" he spat out in anger," You're asking me to love humans!"

The demon smiled faintly, "They're not all that bad."

Sesshoumaru was losing his cool again. "You're disgusting!"

"Then you shall die alone and without honor. No doubt you will live to be much older than me, but it will be painfully slow. You will love old and withered. Your youthful eyes will be clouded and blinded with age. Your bones will become brittle and broken, and all the while, you will be alone, living your worst fear." His father laughed," After all, isn't dying alone and worthless all of our worst fears?"

Sesshoumaru's eyes widened, as he was about to make a remark, but suddenly his father disappeared in front of him. One second he was there, then in another he wasn't. Sesshoumaru turned around quickly, scouring the woods for a glimpse of his father. Even as he turned around, the world around him grew darker and darker. The only light that illuminated him was from a small hole. Confusion and claustrophobia struck him as he tried to grasp what was happening. Feeling his way to the hole, his bones began to ache and his back slumped forward in excruciating pain as his skin grew drew and thin. He looked infront of him at his hands as walking towards the light grew more difficult and tiresome. He drew in an intake of air and lout out a wheezed gasp at the site of his hands, which were deformed and crooked, his claws dull and yellow, and his skin wrinkled and thin so that every blood vessel was a large bump on his hand, and it horrified him.

He walked forward in terror only until his legs gave out beneath him and he fell down in a large thump. Desperate and confused, he tried to pull himself, but only in vain. His breaths grew long and haggard as he lay face down and helpless in the rocky dirt.

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**A/N: Doh! I'm so horrible! I left you all on a major cliff hanger! I hope this is enough of a chapter to satisfy you all for a little bit. I'm so sorry it took so long to finish. I've been busy with school and all. Thank you so much for everyone who left a review on the last chapter! I appreciated it so much! Thank you! I love you all! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter as much as I do. Don't cliff hangers just suck? **


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